Skipping a Beat
by Dancing-StarryEyedDemigod
Summary: Percy and Annabeth went to the same summer camp. Then they went their separate ways. At age 18 and 19, what will college life bring them? New secrets? Old enemies? -AU. *Kind* Constructive Criticism is appreciated. Rated for future chapters, i guess-
1. He's so high above me

And this is my first Percy Jackson AU. Enjoy.

Obviously, I do not own the rights to PJatO. Duh. That's why I'm on fanfiction in the first place.

And so, without further ado, I'm letting Annabeth take the story from here.

* * *

I'm not afraid of heights. I like airplanes. So why was why trembling uncontrollably?

"Are you alright, miss?" A young flight attendant asked me. His brown eyes were full of concern. I smiled shakily up at him and brushed a blonde curl out of my face.

"I'm fine," I said. "Thank you."

He smiled reassuringly and patted my shoulder. "Don't worry," he said to me, "We're almost set to land. It should be about 20 minutes until we touch down in La Guardia."

To prove his statement, the captain came over the intercom and announced that we would be arriving soon. Arriving in New York.

I started trembling even more.

"I'm not afraid of flying," I said. "I don't know why I'm shaking. But I'll be okay."

"Are you meeting someone?"

I froze. The flight attendant had reminded me of the one person I had managed to forget about for the past 4 hours. Memories came flooding back to me. The way his green eyes looked like the ocean on that last day, 3 years ago. The way his black hair fell in front of his face as it got longer. The way he always smelled like saltwater or chlorine. The way he would wrap his arm around my waist protectively when we'd walk by a group of boys on the streets of Manhattan.

Come to think of it, I actually did know why I was trembling. I was nervous. Nervous about seeing him. It _had_ been 3 years. That day at camp was the last day I'd seen him. Then my dad moved us to San Francisco. I wouldn't get to spend the next school year with him, or the summer after that, or the school year after that. I never liked San Francisco, either. Something about it made me feel uneasy, like there was some dark force lurking beneath the shadows.

"Miss?" The flight attended said.

"I'm here, I'm here," I shook my head and returned to the present. "I am meeting someone. An old friend."

There was a 'ding' as I said this, and the flight attendant and I looked up at the seat-belt button, which had been turned on.

"I hope everything goes well when you meet your friend," he said, turning to walk down the aisle and return to his flight attendant cabin.

"Yeah," I said under my breath. "Me too."

The flight attendant stopped and turned around.

"My name's Justin," he said, smiling. "What's yours?"

I grinned at him.

"Annabeth," I replied.

"It's a pleasure," he said before jogging down the aisle to take his seat as we prepared to land in New York City.

* * *

I should have packed light. I didn't pack light. I should have. I didn't. I usually plan these things out before I do them, being the strategist that I am, but I sort of forgot to this time. When I got the call, I pretty much dropped everything, threw most of what I owned into 2 suitcases and a duffel bag, and boarded a California plane heading straight for New York.

I grabbed my suitcases out of baggage claim and stood near the front of the airport. I could navigate the city streets by myself, but if he was waiting for me...

"Excuse me," a young man said to an elderly couple more than 6 yards away from me. I could only see the back of his head, but I knew who it was. And my heart skipped a beat.

"Yes?" the woman said politely.

"I hate to bother you, but I just need to ask you if you've seen a young girl come to baggage claim recently." His hands fell to his sides. In one of them he held a sign that had two words scribbled across it in his messy handwriting. _Annabeth Chase._

"Go on," the man said to him.

"She's got blonde hair and gray eyes," he said to the couple. "She's really pretty and you can tell just by looking at her that she's really smart. She's got really intelligent expressions that make you want to rip your hair out. I'm sorry. I'm ranting. Have you seen her?"

The old woman smiled and pointed an elegant finger straight at me. The boy turned around slowly, to see me smirking back at him. I had to focus to keep the calm expression on my face. On the inside, I was hyperventilating.

"T-thank you," he managed to mutter to the couple. He started taking strides towards me. I dropped my bags and wrapped my arms around his shoulders as he gave me a huge hug. He lifted me off the ground and I laughed and held him tight. He still smelled like the ocean.

When he set me down, I planted a kiss on his cheek.

"So that's what you think of me, Seaweed Brain?" I demanded jokingly, tears on the corners of my smiling eyes. I quickly blinked them back.

"Nice to see you again too, Wise Girl," he replied, wrapping his arm around my waist the way he used to do. He picked up my larger suitcase and slung my duffel over his shoulder, leaving me to carry only my small rolling overnight case.

I rolled my eyes and smiled. "I can carry my own luggage, you know," I said as we walked away from the old couple. "I'm not helpless."

"I know," he replied, grinning, "but I like to pretend you are."

* * *

Percy had his own car now, which surprised me, despite the fact that I should have seen it coming. It was a dark blue four-door with upholstery that even smelled like the ocean. I watched him as he loaded my bags into his trunk.

"It's been too long," I said, leaning against the hood of his car. He slammed the trunk and leaned on his car next to me.

"Has it?" He teased. "I haven't noticed."

I nudged him with my elbow and he looked at me, his eyes sparkling. He nudged me back and I smiled, pushing myself off the car and walking around to the passenger side door. He pulled his keys out of his jeans pocket and opened his door. Mine unlocked and I slid into the gray seat. When the car started, the air conditioning came on and the radio was turned down low. I reached over and turned the knob I guessed was the volume. The car filled with the ending chords of some girl power song as Percy pulled out of the parking spot.

"Tal Bachman, She's So High," A robotic woman's voice announced. I gasped and turned the volume up more. Percy laughed at me.

"Like this song?" he asked, amused. I smacked him on the arm and laughed.

"Absolutely," I replied. "Don't you remember?"

"Of course I can remember," he said, pretending to be offended. "My memory's not _that _bad, you know. It was that night at camp the last year, with the farewell party for the older campers. How could I forget?"

"I'm not sure," I said. "But you'd find a way. You always do."

Percy rolled his eyes. "Cause she's so hi-e-igh, high above me, she's so lovely,"

"She's so high-e-igh, like Cleopatra, Joan of Arc or Aphrodite."

"Wasn't she a Greek goddess?" Percy asked.

"Yes," I replied. "Of beauty. Why?"

"Just thinking back on our Greek Mythology course we took at camp that one year. Remember? Mr. D wouldn't let us stop studying. It was the one thing he actually cared about. Besides hating us, that is."

I guess I should explain this whole 'camp' thing. Percy and I had known each other since we were 12 and going to the same summer camp. It was located in the middle of these rolling hills in New York, at the bottom of this huge valley. There were strawberry fields and cabins and an outdoor mess hall, and it hardly ever rained, and it was the perfect place.

Still, he only went that first year because his parents made him. I had promised myself since age 7 that I wouldn't enjoy it, and Percy, I found out after I met him, had promised himself the same. When he arrived at camp the summer we turned 12, we were forced to take summer courses together, constantly having to socialize and be in the same room. There were things we couldn't stand about one another, but eventually we became friends. I started hanging out with him more and more, sometimes along with his best friend Grover, this curly-haired, brown-eyed boy who Percy had come to camp with. They became my best friends. We found out that we both lived in New York. He promised to come back every summer.

So he did. For 4 years. The summer that we turned 16 was our last summer. All the older campers left for their corners of the world, off to do their own thing. I would have stayed with Percy all the time, but my dad got a job transfer. So I didn't get to live in New York anymore.

"She comes to speak to me," Percy sang dramatically, along with the radio. "I freeze immediately"

"Cause what she says sounds so unreal"

And we kept up our karaoke for another minute of driving. We sounded pretty good, if you ignored the fact that neither of us could sing, especially Percy.

"She's so HI-E-GH-" he sang loudly.

"High above me." I finished for him. The radio played its jingle and went to a commercial. Percy turned the radio back down.

"So, how have you been?" he asked.

"Okay, I guess. I'm excited for the school year."

"How come? Found a great architectural program at the University of San Francisco?" He joked.

"Nope," I replied smugly. "I found an incredible one at Marymount Manhattan."

Percy's jaw dropped. He looked at me disbelievingly. His mouth opened and closed. I had come to learn that this meant he was trying to think of what to say.

"Does that mean-"

"WATCH THE ROAD!" I screamed as an 18-wheeler blared its horn next to us.

"Sorry," he apologized once he got the steering wheel under control.

"S'okay"

"So, does that mean what I think it means?"

"If you think it means I'm going to be living here, then you're so right. For once."

"Hey!" Percy defended himself. "I'm right a lot of times!"

"Oh yeah, like?" I countered.

He hesitated. "Like now?" he said.

I shook my head and smiled.

"Yes Percy, like now."

* * *

Like it? Mind telling me if you do?


	2. Tell her

I should probably clear this up. AU stands for alternate universe, and in this case it means no one's a demigod or a god or a satyr or a nymph or anything.

I'm sorry my updates are so unorganized. I update when I can. You could get a chapter every few weeks or I could give you three chapters in one day. It just depends on how busy I am and if I have a good inspiration. Sorry :[

Take it away, Percy.

* * *

Annabeth and I sat at my kitchen table. She sipped her herbal tea and I rested my hands on the sides of my coffee mug.

"So, Marymout Manhattan, huh?" I said.

"Yes, Seaweed Brain, we talked about this already."

"But I still can't believe you're going to live here."

"Neither can I."

"Are you getting a dorm on campus?"

"No. My dad and I are splitting the cost of an apartment."

"Where?"

"Chelsea District"

"Jeez, Annabeth. That's gonna be expensive"

"You have your own apartment too"

"That's not the same"

"How is it not the same?"

"I'm a man," I said. "I can handle it."

Annabeth stared blankly at me, blinked, then burst out laughing.

"Hey!"

"Sorry, Percy," she said, wiping a tear from her eye. "You just looked so proud of yourself. It was funny"

"I noticed," I pouted, pretending to be offended.

"Oh. You were serious?"

"Yes. Why wouldn't I be?"

Annabeth rolled her storm cloud eyes at me.

"Your head is full of kelp," she said, finishing off her tea. I smiled and took our empty cups to my sink.

"So," Annabeth said awkwardly. "You have a girlfriend yet?"

I sucked in air and started coughing like crazy. I could feel Annabeth's eyes on the back of my head as I tried to get some air in my lungs. I switched off the water and turned around to face her. She sat, her legs crossed, with an eyebrow raised and an amused smile on her face.

"You okay there, Casanova?" she asked smugly. "Don't die on me"

"Yeah. Sorry. I'm fine. You just caught me off guard."

"Obviously. So, answer my question."

"Oh, um, no. Not right now," I said hesitantly. "I did for a few months, but she moved."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Annabeth said, not sounding very sorry at all.

"Yeah. So what about you? Do you have one?"

"A girlfriend? No," she said bluntly.

"No, Wise Girl," I said, rolling my eyes at her sarcasm and obvious avoidance of the subject. "A boyfriend."

She hesitated and suddenly became very interested in my tile floor. I was tempted to look and see what she could possibly be staring at on my floor.

"Earth to Annabeth!" I said after a few moments of silence.

"Oh! Sorry!"

"Well?"

"As a matter of fact, I do."

I blinked.

"Is he good to you?" I asked.

"Percy!"

"I just want to know!"

"Yes, he is. And I just love how you asked if he treated me right before you asked who he was. Very noble of you."

"I try my best. So who is he?"

Annabeth took a breath. "Luke," she said.

And that's when I stopped breathing. A million thoughts were running through my mind.

"Percy? Percy, breathe."

I gasped in air when my lungs started burning. "Luke from camp?" I asked.

"Yes."

"Oh."

"I've been dating him for about a year now," she went on, oblivious to the fact that I was extremely uncomfortable. "I didn't know he still lived in New York, but he does. I just found out a few weeks ago."

"You've been dating him for a year and you didn't know where he lived?"

"Shut up, Seaweed Brain," she snapped. "I thought he lived in California. He was staying with a friend and he didn't tell me why."

"Sounds like he was stalking you."

"Stop it!" Annabeth shouted. "He wasn't stalking me!"

"How do you know?" I shouted back. The small, annoying voice in the back of my head quietly stated that we were fighting for no reason. I ignored it. "Traveling all the way from New York to the west coast, just to see you?" I went on, my anger growing. "Sounds pretty suspicious to me!"

"You don't know him like I do!" Annabeth shouted, jumping to her feet.

"Doesn't he lie and hide things from you too?"

"That was one time, Percy! Let it go! He wasn't right in the head and you know that!"

"And now he is?"

"I've known him since I was 7!" Annabeth barked, getting in my face. "He has a kind heart. He's brave. And most of all he cares about me. He promised me he always would."

"And hasn't he broken that promise?"

"Stop!" She shouted, shoving my chest.

"Hasn't he!"

"I knew I shouldn't have told you!" Annabeth cried, pushing off my chest and walking to the table.

"Then why did you, Wise Girl?"

"I don't know!" she shouted.

I dropped to my couch and started rubbing my temples.

"This is stupid," I said, trying to keep calm.

"Don't I know it," Annabeth agreed, walking over and sitting next to me on the couch.

"I'm sorry I yelled," I said.

"Me too."

"I just don't trust him," I said stubbornly.

"I know, Percy, but please try to understand. _I _trust him. I love him," Annabeth said. She sounded like she was trying to reassure herself.

"I get it," I said. "But that doesn't mean I have to like it."

Annabeth sighed and stood up, walking to the hallway that led to the guest bedroom she was staying in until she finished the papers for her apartment.

"No," she said softly from the archway. "You don't."

* * *

I yawned and sat up in bed. I scratched my head and looked over at the clock. 11:46 am. I swung my feet over the side of the bed and stood up, pulling on a random shirt from my closet.

When I walked into the kitchen I saw Annabeth sitting at the table, writing frantically. I walked to the freezer and yanked out a frozen breakfast sandwich.

"How long have you been up?" I asked, shutting the freezer door.

"Oh, 6 or so," Annabeth replied, not looking up from her papers.

"Are you crazy?" I said, bewildered, as I tossed the sandwich into the microwave and hit the defrost button.

"I hope not," she said. "That would suck"

I rolled my eyes and walked to my kitchen table, sitting down across from my friend. She looked incredible for someone who had been up since 6 in the morning. Her blonde curls were pulled back in a loose bun at the top of her neck. She was wearing a three-quarter sleeved pink and white shirt and a pair of gray sweatpants. She tapped her pencil on the black rim of her small reading glasses.

"I didn't know you wore glasses," I said.

"I don't," she replied, eyes glued to her work. There weren't going to be any interesting conversations this morning with Annabeth "Wise Girl" the Crazy Workaholic. I sighed and looked out the window. The microwave beeped at me. I got up and went to fetch my breakfast from the machine. I ate it at the kitchen counter in silence. Annabeth dropped her pencil.

"There," she said, standing up. "Page 2? Done."

"You're only on page _2_?" I asked, my mouth full of egg and cheese.

"Shut up, _Seaweed Brain. _And don't talk with your mouth full. It's rude."

I laughed and swallowed my food. I crumpled up the wrapper and aimed for my trash can. It missed. Completely. Annabeth, who was standing by the trash can anyway, reached down by her feet and picked up the wrapper, tossing it into the trash.

"So," she said, coming over to the counter and leaning on it. "Anything fun planned for today? I need a break from all this paperwork."

"Wow, never thought I'd hear you say that," I said, raising an eyebrow. "And you're only on page 2, remember?"

"3, actually"

"Whatever."

"So, what are we doing today?"

I thought for a minute. "How do you feel about running some errands with me?"

"Do I have to get dressed?"

"No."

"Then let's go."

* * *

Percy and Annabeth fight all the time. It's half of their relationship. So I had to have them fight about something stupid and pointless at completely the wrong time.

Like it? Mind telling me if you did?


	3. His promise

Well, being sick, I decided to spend the day writing the next chapter of this. I had nothing else to do. Happy Birthday to me. :/

Anyways, I hope you like it. I've been updating pretty fast, haven't I?

I now pass the torch to Annabeth, our very own Wise Girl.

* * *

We didn't even bother to get ready. Percy was wearing dark green pajama pants and a three-quarter sleeved blue and white t-shirt. His black hair was so extremely messy. We both looked tired, and I'm sure we looked like a couple with the matching shirts. We didn't plan it that way.

So, there we were, sitting in Percy's blue ford focus, the radio on as we sat in traffic on the streets on New York. I missed this place so much. There was always traffic, but at least the city could be navigated, unlike San Francisco. It was so huge, and you could never find your way. I hated it.

"Well, this is gonna take a while," Percy said, turning down the radio.

"You knew it would," I said, playfully hitting him on the shoulder.

"Yeah, so?"

"What did you wanna talk about?"

"Huh?" Percy glanced over at me.

"You knew we'd get stuck in traffic and that we'd have to pass the time somehow. So what did you wanna talk about?"

Percy sighed and ran his hand through his messy hair.

"I don't know. I guess I just wanted to have a conversation without fighting about one thing or another.

"That's never gonna happen, Seaweed Brain."

"It's worth a shot, right?"

"Sure."

"Okay. So, no more fighting?"

"I'll try."

"Me too," Percy said, putting the car in drive as the traffic started moving.

"So, what are we doing today?"

"Well, I was thinking we'd get some lunch and visit an old friend."

"Who?"

"Oh, you'll find out soon enough."

"That's not fair!" I said, laughing.

"Yes it is!"

"How?"

"Because."

I chose not to argue with him. The traffic started moving even faster. Percy drove along for a few minutes before parking on the side of Broadway next to a small restaurant. I got out of the car and looked up at the glass windows displaying the restaurant's name in red, neon, cursive writing.

"No. Way. In. Hades."

"Going all Greek mythological on me, Wise Girl?"

"She does NOT have her own restaurant."

"Yeah, I never would have guessed it either."

We walked into the small brick building and cold air conditioning blasted us in the face. There were people all over the place, some dressed up, some looking even worse than us. Standing by the kitchen doors was a tall, slender girl who looked at least 25. She had on a black button up shirt, dark blue skinny jeans, and black boots. She had in black stud earrings and her black hair was layered and down to her shoulders. She was holding a clipboard and chewing on the end of a pen as a businessman talked to her. She looked up at me and Percy and her ice blue eyes widened.

"Annabeth Chase?" she said.

"Thalia!" I shouted, running up to her as she shoved her clipboard at the businessman. I gave her a huge hug and laughed.

"I haven't seen you in years!" she said.

"I know! This is crazy! You look so old!"

"Thanks!" Thalia said sarcastically.

"No, I mean, you look sophisticated. You used to dress like death!"

"Hey, I liked my style!"

"Whatever," I said, not wanting to argue. "I just can't believe you have a restaurant named after you!"

"Wow, feeling a little girly there, ladies?" Percy said, walking up to me and Thalia and laughing at us.

"Percy!" Thalia shouted, hitting him on the arm. "Why didn't you tell me she was coming into town?"

"I wanted it to be a surprise!"

"Some surprise, Seaweed Brain!" I said.

"I go here all the time."

"But I've never heard of it," I defended myself.

The businessman came up and tapped Thalia on the shoulder.

"Yes! Fine! Just do it!" she said. The businessman looked startled and hesitantly held out Thalia's clipboard. She sighed and took it from his hands. He quickly left the building.

"Look at you," Percy said to her. "Scaring innocent businessmen like that."

"Shut up," Thalia said, smiling.

"So, are we gonna eat or what?" Percy said, turning to me.

I smiled. "Why not," I said. Thalia told one of her employees to show us to a table, and we followed him to the back of the room. He seated us right next to a window and gave us menus.

"I'm guessing this is usually fancy?"

"It can be," Percy replied.

I shook my head and looked at my menu.

* * *

"You're crazy," I said, taking a drink of the latte Percy and I had just ordered. We had finished eating lunch at Thalia's and decided not to go back to Percy's apartment. We walked down Broadway and talked and now we were heading back to the car.

"No, I'm not," Percy countered, taking the Styrofoam cup from my hands and taking a drink himself. "It really happened."

"I seriously doubt that."

"Why?" Percy asked, handing me back the latte.

"Because no one can breathe underwater."

"But it happened! I swear!"

"Well, you swim so much I wouldn't be surprised if you grew gills. But I still don't believe you."

"Fine. Be that way," Percy said stubbornly as we reached his car. I opened the passenger side door and got in. Percy slid into the driver's seat and jammed the keys into the ignition.

"Where to now?" he asked.

"Home," I said. "I need to finish the paperwork for my apartment."

"Whatever you say," Percy said as he put the car in drive and pulled away from the curb.

* * *

Yeah, kind of uneventful. Sorry.

Like it? Mind telling me if you do?


	4. Her fireworks

Here we go again :]  
Happy 4th of July (to the residents of the United States)

Do your thing, Perce.

* * *

"Are subway tickets still the same price?" Annabeth asked as she walked out of the guest bedroom, pulling her hair back into a ponytail.

"Yeah, why?"

"I'm treating Luke to lunch today and I just wanted to make sure I'll have enough."

"It depends on what he gets to eat" I said bitterly.

"I just want to have enough."

"Fine. Where are you going?"

"I'm taking the R train uptown." Annabeth said impatiently.

"Where are you going after that?"

"Jeez, Percy, what are you? My father? I'm going to walk around town and then go to a fireworks display tonight with Luke. Happy?"

"Be careful."

Annabeth rolled her eyes and smiled. "I'll be fine," she replied, walking to the doorway.

"Annabeth?" I asked, stopping her in her tracks. She placed her hand on the doorframe.

"Yes?" she said, not turning around.

"Please, promise me you'll call if something happens."

"Nothing's going to-"

"Please." I interrupted. I felt like I was begging, but I didn't care. "Promise you'll call."

Annabeth sighed. "I promise," she said, stepping out of my apartment

I placed the last clean plate into the cupboard and shut the dishwasher. I hated putting away dishes, but when you live by yourself, you have to clean up after yourself.

"For every 99 times you looked me in the eye, you looked me in the eye and swore you weren't lying," a girl sang on the radio I had turned on to pass the time. "Well, I was so blind, I never saw the signs. Im getting out tonight and you're not invited."

"That was Kate Voegele with 99 Times," an announcer said. "We'll be right back with-" the radio station jingle played and I shut off the radio.

I was just about to start wondering what I was going to do with Annabeth being gone, but my phone rang. I shrugged and picked up the cordless, pressing the talk button and bringing it to my ear.

"Hello?" I said.

"Percy, what's going on?" a familiar voice said from the other end.

"Oh, hey Rachel! I'm just wallowing in self pity about my lack of plans for the day."

"Poor Percy. Well, I may have a cure for that wallowing."

"And that is?" I asked, sitting down at my kitchen table.

"The Stolls and I- you remember Travis and Connor Stoll from camp, right?" I remembered Travis and Connor Stoll. They were twin brothers. Well, they weren't twins, but they looked like twins. They were always together, and they loved playing pranks on the campers when we went to the same summer camp. Rachel went to the camp, too, but she didn't really fit in at first. The Stolls played this huge prank on her but she still became one of our closest friends. Her parents were the owners of a company called Dare Enterprises. They were insanely rich. Why her parents would send her to some dirty summer camp instead of a beach vacation, I'll never know.

"I remember them," I said.

"Well, we were planning on spending some time at Central park today, then later we were gonna make my dad fly us down to his Charleston lake house for this killer fireworks display the locals are planning."

"That would take a long time to get there, Rach," I pointed out.

"It only takes an hour if you go by Dare Helicopter," she said mischievously. I could imagine her smirking on the other end, her red wavy hair covering one and/or both of her twinkling blue eyes. "C'mon, Percy, It's the Fourth of July. It'll be fun. You know you want to."

I did want to. But some nagging feeling in the back of my head told me I should stay home. That something was gonna happen today.

"We might convince him to let us swim when we get there," Rachel crooned. "You still have a swimsuit at the lake house."

"Alright, I'll go," I said, smiling.

Ha! I knew that'd getcha," Rachel said proudly. "I'll meet you and the Stolls in central park in about 30 minutes, okay?"

"Fine by me. Seeya there."

"Bye, Percy," Rachel said. Click. I ran a hand through my hair and went into my bedroom. I changed into a pair of khaki shorts and a green polo t-shirt. I slipped brown sandals on my feet and grabbed my keys, cell phone, and subway pass, shoving them into my pocket.

* * *

The blades of the Dare helicopter created artificial wind as it landed on the roof of the Dare Enterprises building. After hours of goofing off around Central park, Rachel, the Stolls and I called Mr. Dare and begged like teenagers for him to let us take his helicopter to his lake house. He gave in when his daughter promised she'd go shopping with their image consultant to pick out a dress for an upcoming gala.

As Rachel started to climb the ladder to the helicopter, I reached out and grabbed her arm. She turned around and raised an eyebrow at me.

"Yes?" She smiled.

"Thanks," I said. "Today has been so much fun. Without you, I would have been stuck at home worrying. I can't wait until we get to the lake house."

Rachel smiled. "Anytime, Percy. That's what friends are for." She reached for my hand and pulled me over to the ladder. "Now get on the helicopter. We're wasting valuable air time"

I laughed and grabbed the ladder with my other hand. Rachel squeezed my hand before letting go and continuing to climb the ladder herself. The four of us got situated in the back of the helicopter with a deck of cards and the pilot took us into the sky, heading straight for Charleston.

The sun started setting on Rachel's pool. Rachel and Travis fought over the inflatable raft in the shallow end and Connor and I were having breath-holding contests in the deep end. I was winning, of course. Connor pulled me up by my hair and glared at me.

"I win," I said smugly. Connor smirked and dunked me underwater. I laughed and swam away as he chased me.

You could hear the explosion from the bottom of the pool. Connor and I surfaced and looked over at Rachel and Travis, who had froze in their places of trying to get on the raft. We all locked eyes for a minute, then splashed out of the pool at once. Travis dragged the raft up the stairs behind Rachel and Connor and I followed. We wrapped up in towels and quickly pulled lawn chairs out of Rachel's pool house. Rachel and I sat in front of the Stolls, which was probably a bad idea, but we were ready to see some fireworks.

Rachel leaned over toward me after we got settled. "When do you think they're gonna start?" She asked. Almost immediately after the words left her mouth, the sky lit up with red white and blue detonations.

Minute after minute of fireworks passed. Pinwheels and fountains in every color decorated the sky.

Fireworks were my favorite part of the Fourth of July. During the last year of camp, the activities director organized a huge fireworks display with the kids at the camp who were good with explosives.

The fireworks were over after 2 hours. When the last explosion faded I checked my watch. 10:30. Annabeth would be back at my apartment around midnight, and I wasn't sure if she took the spare keys or not.

"Hey Rach?" I asked, turning to my redhead friend.

"Yes, Percy?" Rachel replied, tilting her head toward me. Her hair shined in the moonlight.

"Can we head back? Not that it wasn't fun, I just wanna go back to New York."

"Of course, Perce," Rachel said. She pulled out her cell phone and called the pilot. "Ready the chopper," she said officially, probably mocking her dad. She snapped the phone shut and smiled at me before picking up her lawn chair and trekking back to the pool house.

* * *

My keys rattled as I swung open the door to my apartment. The lights were off and it was dead quiet, so I knew Annabeth wasn't back yet. I tossed my keys, phone, and swimsuit through my bedroom doorway and turned on a few more lights. I dropped to the couch and reached for the remote. The first channel I turned to was the history channel, so I knew Annabeth had been watching TV. I flipped through the channels before I decided on some pathetic looking fear-factor type show.

After a few minutes, I heard a soft knock on the door. I pushed myself off the couch and opened the door. Annabeth stood in front of me, the Yankees baseball cap she always used to wear covering one of her eyes.

"Hey, Wise Girl," I said, backing up so she could come inside. "Have fun today?"

She nodded and gave a small smile before starting to dash for her room. I grabbed her by the waist and pushed her back in front of me.

"Not so fast," I said, concerned. "What's up?"

"Nothing, Seaweed Brain," she said with the same old Annabeth tone. "Just a long day. Let me by, okay?"

"Okay, okay. Just don't try funny stuff with me," I playfully scolded, wagging my finger at her. She flinched and I stared at her, worried. "Are you sure you're okay?" I asked.

"I'm fine," she said, pulling her hat farther over her eye and turning to walk to her guest bedroom. I raised an eyebrow and ran in front of her, stopping her from walking any further. She looked at the floor. I flicked the brim of the hat and it plummeted to the floor.

"Annabeth-" I reached for my friend's face.

"It's nothing!" Annabeth said quickly, swatting my hand away and covering the left side of her face. She started to run out of the room, but I grabbed her wrists and pulled her towards me. At the same time I pulled her hands away from her face.

"What... How..." I was at a loss for words. "Who did that to you?"

The area around Annabeth's left eye was swollen and bruised. The bruise itself was a sickly shade of purple, but around it were patches of disgusting looking yellow, green, and/or brown. Her eye was barely visible through red, swollen skin. It was horrible but mesmerizing at the same time. I gaped at Annabeth and she looked away.

"Annabeth, how did you get that?"

"I'm such an idiot," she said, looking up with a small, reassuring smile. "I hurt it earlier today. I ran into a pole."

"It needs ice."

"No, Percy, I'm fine, really-"

"I don't want to hear it," I said, steering her towards the couch. I sat her down and jogged to the freezer with a plastic bag. I filled it with crushed ice and grabbed a washcloth. I held the makeshift icepack to her eye as she sat there and stared at the ground. After a few minutes of me asking if she needed anything- anything at all- I told her she could go to bed. She grabbed my hand and opened her mouth like she was about to say something, but apparently changed her mind. She squeezed my hand and got up, quickly walking to her guest room. I watched the hallway for a few minutes after she disappeared, then decided to go to bed. There was no point in being up anyway.

I took off my polo and changed out of my khakis into blue sweatpants. I kicked my sandals under my bed and turned of my light. I slid under the sheets and collapsed onto my pillow. I thought about Annabeth. She had said she had run into a pole, but for some reason I knew she was lying. She wasn't clumsy. She didn't do stupid things like run into poles and give herself black eyes. Those are things _I _would do.

I sighed and tried to go to sleep. For a while, all I could hear were the crickets chirping outside my window. Then, after a few moments, I heard something more horrible than I ever thought I'd hear.

When your best friend cries, a part of your body screams out to help them. You want, with all your soul, to make them stop crying. You know that if you go and try to comfort them, you'll start crying too, and then you'll both be useless. When your best friend cries, it's a horrible, bizarre, chilling sound.

When _my_ best friend cries, I can imagine her hugging her knees to her chest, her blonde curls falling in front of her face. I can imagine her body shivering with every sob as she wipes at her face. And I can imagine tears falling from her beautiful gray eyes, now looking miserable and heartbroken.

You don't want to have to fall asleep with that image in your head. It's not easy

* * *

Muahaha, I've added Rachel.  
Hmm, _I _actually have no problem with Rachel. We all know who ends up together anyways :]

I had an epiphany for the last part. After I started writing chapter 3, I knew this was how I wanted to end chapter 4.

Haha, I gave you chapter 4 on the 4th  
:]

Like it? Mind telling me if you do?


	5. When he cares

Here is the fifth installment of Skipping a Beat- a Percy Jackson Alternate Universe.

Annabeth's POV.

* * *

Today was the day. I had finished all the paperwork and sent it all in. I had received the house keys and multiple information sheets about the building. Today was the day I moved into my new apartment.

I sighed as I threw off my bedcovers and sat up, rubbing my hands over my eyes. A sharp pain shot through the left side of my face when I did this, and I remembered.

_"Got enough money for lunch?" Luke said patiently, swinging our hands._

_"I think so," I said, biting my lip. I prayed that I had enough. If I didn't..._

_"Let's make this a good day," Luke said, pulling me closer to him. "Okay?"_

_I smiled. I don't know why I thought my boyfriend would do anything to hurt me. I rested my head on his shoulder. "Okay."_

_"Good day, huh?" Luke said. _

_We were leaving a small lot after watching a firework show, walking down the crowded sidewalk. _

_"It was."_

_"I'm glad you had enough money for lunch today."_

_I took a chance. "Me too," I said, not making eye contact with Luke. "Percy told me this morning that subway tickets were still cheap, but I wasn't sure if he was right."_

_Luke tensed and dropped my hand. I immediately wished I hadn't brought up Percy._

_"When are you moving into your own apartment, again?" He said callously. _

_"I don't know, Luke," I said softly, grabbing his bicep. "Please. I'm sorry. Let's talk about something else. I won't bring it up again."_

_Luke didn't look at me. "I really don't trust that guy," he said. _

_"Please, Luke," I pleaded. "He's my best friend. Why do you hate him so much?"_

_Luke's expression turned angry. "_He's _your best friend?" he snapped, pushing me away, quickly taking the steps down to the subway. I followed close behind. _

_"Luke, please," I said. "I'm sorry!"_

_Luke stopped in his tracks, causing me to run into him. "Shut up," he said. I flinched. At least it was a good sign that he stopped walking. At least I hoped it was a good sign. _

_"Please, Luke, can we go somewhere and talk about it?"_

_"What's there to talk about?" he asked harshly, spinning around to stare me down with his furious eyes. _

_"I... I..."_

_"Stupid girl," Luke said vengefully. I stood, frozen, when I should have seen what was coming._

_"Luke..."_

_I don't know what I would have said, because Luke stopped my speech with a sucker punch right under my left eye. I slumped against the wall of the subway as Luke walked away angrily._

I felt the throbbing bruise for the exact point of impact. It didn't take me too long to figure out where it was. It hurt too much.

"Knock, knock," Percy said from the other side of the door. I walked over to it and opened it a little, enough to see Percy but not enough for him to see the left side of my face.

Percy smiled, then saw I was hiding. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I already know about your eye, Annabeth," he said.

Oh crap! What did I tell him? I know I didn't tell him the truth. But I told him something. Oh yeah! That's right.

"Well, still. It's embarrassing," I said fake cheerfully. "I mean, running into a pole? It sounds like something _you_ would do." I almost let my smile falter as I remembered that he was actually my inspiration for that lie.

"Annabeth, you know I don't believe you, right?" he said, frustrated.

I smiled brighter and opened the door wider. "I know, right?" I chirped. "I'm not clumsy, am I?" I brushed past Percy and walked down the hall. I stopped smiling while my back was to him. My mouth hurt.

Percy followed me into the living room and sat down next to me on the couch.

"Annabeth," he began. "Are you sure you're ready to move out today?"

"Yes," I said, my fake cheeriness fading. "I've got all the paperwork done. It's time, anyways."

"But-"

"I have to do this, Percy," I said. "For me."

"I don't like not being able to protect you."

I laughed. "I can protect myself, Percy," I said.

"Obviously not," Percy said, lighting pressing his fingertips to my left cheekbone. I looked away and stood up.

"I'm going to get my bags," I said quietly. "You can help me take them my apartment, if you want yo."

"Of course I want to," Percy said softly, standing. "I'll help you whether I want to or not, even when you don't need it."

"Thank you," I said, walking into the guest bedroom and grabbing my things.

* * *

"This is gonna be exciting, " I said sarcastically as I flopped down on the floor next to Percy. The empty apartment seemed huge.

"Oh, definitely," he replied, rubbing his hand over the edge of the carpet that connected with the wood flooring. I fell back onto the wood and stared at the ceiling. Percy lied down next to me.

"So, what do you wanna talk about?" I asked.

"You," Percy responded.

"Okay," I said suspiciously. "What about me?"

"What really happened to your eye?" he asked. "Tell the truth."

I sighed. "I can't tell you, Seaweed Brain, otherwise I already would have."

"Why can't you tell me?" Percy whined.

"Because it's embarrassing," I admitted, propping myself up on my elbows.

"You can tell me," he said gently. "You can tell me anything. You know that."

"Okay, you really wanna know?" I said, preparing to lie. Percy nodded eagerly. I rolled my eyes. "I got in a fight with this girl on the subway, okay?"

Percy sat up. "A catfight?" he asked.

"If you must call it that, yes."

"That's what I assumed it was," he said.

"Well," I said, relieved. "I hate to admit this, but you were right."

Percy's eyes widened. "Whoa, you did NOT just say that."

"I did just say that. Anyways, she punched me because I insulted her."

"You insulted a New Yorker?" Percy asked. "I thought you knew better than that!"

"I do know better than that! It's just... she was making these faces at Luke. I can't even describe them. If she could, she would have attacked him. I couldn't stand it. It was driving me insane!" I dropped off my elbows, back down to the floor, and stared at the ceiling. Percy got up and went into the kitchen-to-be.

"Who is she?" he asked after a few minutes.

"I don't even know her name!" I barked, sitting up. "How pathetic is that!"

"Annabeth!" Percy shouted from on top of the kitchen counter. "You're smart. Why would you call yourself pathetic? You were- and I hate to say this, because I hate that guy- defending what's rightfully yours. Defending the one you love. I would have done the same thing."

I glanced over at him and stood up.

"Percy," I said softly, walking over to him. I pecked him on the cheek. "Thank you. Just the fact that you said that means a lot."

Percy stared at the air in front of him, stunned. I laughed at him and walked into a different room, beginning to plan for when furniture arrived.

* * *

"Percy, you don't have to do this," I said, reluctantly laying out my sleeping bag.

"I know," Percy said, tossing his sleeping bag on the ground next to mine. "I want to."

"How many times am I gonna hear you say that?" I moaned.

"How many times am I gonna hear you say 'Percy, you don't have to do this'?"

"Point taken. But really, I'll be fine. You don't have to stay the night here. You should go back to your apartment and get some sleep."

"I can get sleep here. C'mon, I would feel much better if I could stay here. Just for the night. You don't even have any furniture yet! How can I- as a gentleman- leave you alone so furniture-less?"

I laughed. "It's 'under furnished,' Seaweed Brian. And since when are you a gentleman?"

"Hey, I can be gentlemanly!"

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah! In 7th grade I opened a door for this girl in my class!"

"Yeah!" I mocked him. "Then you let it slam in her face!"

"She deserved it," he said. "She thought she was better than everyone else."

"Ah, so boys really do see the girl drama."

"Yeah, it's stupid!"

"Imagine if you were part of it," I said, getting into my sleeping bag. "It's not only stupid, it's torture."

"_Right. _And when have you ever been in any girl drama, Wise Girl?" He asked, shutting off the lights and crawling into his sleeping bag. I took a breath.

"Oh, I'd say the summer before our sophomore year."

I couldn't read Percy's expression. "At camp?" he asked.

"Yes, at camp," I replied. "Where else did I spend my summers?"

"Wait, with who?"

"What, the drama? Rachel."

Percy started laughing. "I can't imagine Rachel in any drama. Ever," he said after he could get enough air in his lungs.

"That's because we never let you see it, Seaweed Brain," I said, rolling my eyes, even if he couldn't see that.

He stopped laughing. "Why not?" he asked.

"Because it was about you."

Percy didn't say anything. I mentally smacked myself in the face for letting him turn off the lights. I was dying to see his expression.

"What about me?" he said quietly after what seemed like hours of silence.

"About you in general. Like, who liked you more, who wanted to date you more, things like that."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Back up. Wanted to date?"

"You got it. I officially won after she signed that Oracle pledge thing. Go me."

"Wait," Percy said mischievously. "You won the chance to date me?"

I rolled my eyes and laughed. "Good night, Seaweed Brain."

"Wait, we're not done talking here," he replied. But after a few minutes of silence from me, he sighed. "Good night, Wise Girl," he said.

* * *

Well, I hope it wasn't too horrible :]

Now, I must go. I just had to get this chapter up, but now I have to leave for pom practice. Wish me luck, Coach says she's got a surprise for us. :D

Like it? Mind telling me if you do?


	6. She makes me remember

I now present to you... *drumroll* DUN DUN DUN DUUUUNNNN!! Chapter 6! :]

Enjoy your time, Perce.

* * *

I assumed it was a catfight. Just the way Annabeth looked all ashamed and weak when she came home. She'd gotten into a fight she shouldn't have gotten in with someone who can't take a joke.

I would know- I've worn that face before. I'd fought that kind of fight.

-_-_-_-_-

_"Hey Percy," Annabeth said, reaching up to give me a big hug._

_I smiled. "Hey," I replied. "How was your day? Shoot any good targets?"_

_Annabeth laughed, flipping her blonde curls over one shoulder. "Archery's hard," she said. "But I got a few good ones. How was your rock climbing?"_

_"Too easy," I said jokingly. "As always."_

_Annabeth rolled her eyes but smiled, sitting down on the dock and sticking her feet in the water. I sat down next to her and let my legs dangle off the edge._

_"I love camp," she said._

_I nodded. "Too bad there's only a few days left."_

_"Too bad for those of us who hate school," she teased._

_"Ugh, don't remind me."_

_"Fine, I won't," Annabeth said, smiling. After a few moments, she splashed some water on her face. "It's hot."_

_"You're right," I said, standing up. Annabeth looked up at me suspiciously and I winked down at her. I looked out at the ocean and peeled off my orange camp t-shirt. Annabeth laughed at me as I dove into the water. The salt burned my eyes and the cold shocked me, but I loved it. When I surfaced, I shook my head and water from my hair and face sprayed all over Annabeth. She gasped and splashed me._

_"I'm already wet, wise girl," I said._

_"Yeah, that didn't really work," Annabeth said._

_"I noticed."_

_Annabeth stuck her tongue out at me. "You're such a seaweed brain," she said._

_"Oh, am I now?" _

_Annabeth nodded and laughed. I splashed some water on her._

_"Oh, that's it," she joked, jumping to her feet and cannon-balling into the water. She broke the surface and tackled me. We went down, underwater, wrestling and wanting to laugh. When we came back up, her hair and shirt were stuck to her skin and he were both out of breath. We smiled and started swimming back to the dock._

_"Am I interrupting something?" a smooth voice said from above our heads. Annabeth looked up and blushed. When I looked up, I had to shield my eyes from the bright sun. All I could make out was the silhouette of a buff 16 or 17 year old guy_

_"Luke," Annabeth said, embarrassed. "H-how's it going?" Luke held out his hand to her and helped her out of the water. I hoisted myself onto the dock and looked up at Luke. He was smiling, but it wasn't a friendly smile. It was more of an I-know-something-you-don't-but-you-will-never-get-it-cause-I'm-older, evil kind of smile. Annabeth smoothed her shirt and pulled at her camp necklace. _

_Luke ruffled Annabeth's hair. "I just need to borrow Percy for a second," he said, looking at me. "That alright?"_

_I looked at Annabeth and picked up my dry t-shirt. She waved goodbye as I followed Luke to the woods. _

_"What do you say we just talk for a bit?" He asked, disappearing into the woods. I followed my friend through the trees._

-_-_-_-_-

Still, it was Annabeth. She's normally strong-minded and doesn't lose. Ever.

I looked over at the sound of someone sucking in air. Annabeth snapped her eyes open and sat up.

"What time is it?" she asked sleepily.

"You're cute when you sleep," I said, grinning.

"Thank you, Seaweed Brain," she said, rolling her eyes and smiling. "I forgot you were still here. You kinda scared me half to death."

"Sorry," I said, standing. "I should probably go."

Annabeth looked at me like she wanted to say something, but apparently decided against it. She smiled and stood up.

"Okay," she said, somewhat reluctantly. I really wanted her to tell me what was bothering her. Maybe she was just tired. Or stressed out about the new apartment. She stood on her toes and wrapped her arms around my shoulders. I hugged her waist and held her close for a few moments.

When I pulled away, she looked me in the eye and leaned back off her toes. We stayed like that for a while. I couldn't look away from her silver eyes. I leaned in closer before I realized what I was doing. Annabeth leaned in too. Our faces kept inching towards each other. I don't think either one of us had any control over what we were doing. I could smell her breath and see every fleck of color in her eyes when she rested her forehead on mine.

"Promise you'll always be there for me, Seaweed Brain?" she whispered.

I kept my eyes locked on hers. "Of course, Wise Girl," I replied.

"Promise you'll never hurt me?"

I subconsciously wondered how anyone could ever hurt such a beautiful, smart, incredible person. But I shook my head. "I would never, ever hurt you. Ever."

Annabeth sighed, the slightest grin breaking through her lips. She closed the small distance between us and gently pressed her lips to mine. Before I could register what she was doing, it was over. She pulled away. Tears were on the corners of her eyes.

"Thank you," she whispered, looking down at the floor. I looked at her, concerned.

"Whats wrong?" I asked, lifting her chin and staring into her eyes.

"Nothing," she said quietly, a tear falling down her cheek. She pulled out of my arms and crossed to her kitchen-to-be. "Just don't tell Luke."

Luke.

-_-_-_-_-

_"Why are we walking this deep into the forest?" I asked, pushing aside branches as I followed Luke. _

_"Just a little surprise," he said, not turning around. I couldn't see his expression, but his voice sounded less than friendly. It had only been my first summer at camp, and while I had immediately become inseparable with a few people, like Annabeth and Thalia, Luke was one of the friends I had that seemed remotely distant._

_"What kind of surprise?" I asked wearily. Luke stopped by a small creek, next to a giant boulder. He sat down and smiled at me, but it wasn't a warm smile. It seemed like Luke never smiled warmly anymore. He didn't answer my question._

_"What kind of surprise?" I asked again. Luke reached into his pocket and pulled out a small cardboard box. He set the rectangle on the rock next to him._

_"I'm not gonna lie, Percy," he started. "I don't like you."_

_"What?"_

_Luke held his hand up. "Let me finish," he said. "I don't like you- but I've kept you around because maybe you meant something. Maybe you'd... help me out. But you've proved to just be a nuisance."_

_"What's in the box, Luke?" I asked._

_"It could kill you. Though, it'll probably just hospitalize you for some time. But even that'll be enough."_

_"Be enough to do what?" I asked, though now that I look back on it, I should have run._

_"Get to Annabeth, of course."_

_"What!?"_

_"Oh come on, kid. She's had a crush on me for years. You think you can just walk in and take my chances? Don't think so."_

_"But she's at least 4 years younger than you. What could you possibly want with her?"_

_Luke shrugged. "She'll be easy." I'm sure I looked like an incredibly stupid little kid, wanting to take on this big high school guy, but I was so angry with him, I threw a punch at his stomach. He caught my fist. _

_"Bad idea, Percy Jackson," he said, reaching for the cardboard box. He opened it and dropped it on the ground. He twisted my arm behind my back and pushed me forward. When I turned back around, he was walking away._

_"Have fun," he said, disappearing into the shadows. I rolled my eyes and started to walk away, but stopped. What was in that box? I looked down at my feet and froze in fear._

-_-_-_-_-

A few days after I helped Annabeth finish setting up her apartment for a week, I walked down the streets of the city. I stuffed my hands in my pockets as I neared a familiar restaurant. I pushed open the glass door, walking past the host podium and crowded tables, up through the kitchen door. Thalia was standing in the middle of the white and silver room, shouting orders and directing 15 or so people to do various tasks. Someone dropped something and everyone busted out in laughter. Even Thalia smiled. It was like one big, happy family, though you could tell things were tense and rushed.

"Hey Thals," I said, giving my friend a side hug. She turned and hugged me back before pulling away and returning to what she was doing before, which just happened to be rolling up silverware in napkins. She had her hair up in a loose bun and wore dangling black and silver earrings. She wore dark gray sweatpants and a maroon t-shirt with the word "Thalia's" written across it in black cursive. She had on black converse hi-tops with white laces and stood with one foot crossed over the other. I don't know how or why I noticed these things, but with Thalia I always did. Maybe Annabeth was rubbing off on me.

"Busy day?" I asked, glancing around at the commotion.

"Oh my gods, Percy, you wouldn't believe how much attention the new lunch menu's drawing in! It's incredible-"

"Are you going all Greek mythology on me now too?" I interrupted her

Thalia paused, mid-sentence, and started at me. "What?" she asked.

"Annabeth said 'what in Hades' a few weeks ago. Did you guys take some mythology courses in high school or something?"

Thalia blinked at me. "You're so weird," she decided to say. I smiled and followed her out of the kitchen to the main seating area.

"So, speaking of Annabeth," she said as she placed the napkin/silverware combinations on tables.

"What about her?" I asked.

"She stopped by the other day," Thalia said quietly, not looking at me.

"Yeah?" I said cautiously. "So?"

"And guess what she was wearing."

"Clothes?" I remarked.

Thalia rolled her eyes. "Very mature," she said.

"Hey, you said to guess."

"Jeans and a long sleeved t-shirt."

"In the middle of the summer?"

"Yes, in the middle of the summer."

"Why?"

"Why? I don't know. I was hoping you knew."

"Well, I don't."

"She also had a bruise on the right side of her face, next to her mouth. You know anything about that?"

I froze. First the black eye, and now this? When I thought about it, I realized I hadn't seen Annabeth in a while, four days max. How could I let that happen?

"No," I said bitterly. "No, I don't know anything about that." I turned on my heel and started for the door.

"Where are you going?" Thalia shouted, causing people to stare.

"To find Annabeth," I said.

"She's with Luke," Thalia shouted, reluctantly. "You won't be able to find her."

-_-_-_-_-

_A scorpion. A pit scorpion. Bright pink with a red stinger. It seemed to turn its head toward me. I gulped._

-_-_-_-_-

I grit my teeth and turned around slowly. "Do we not keep track of where she is when she goes out with him?" I shouted. "Is that not important!?"

"Percy," Thalia said, running up to me and putting a hand on my arm. "She's okay. She's safe with Luke."

"No she's not," I said angrily. I couldn't believe I'd let myself allow her to get hurt- again.

"What do you mean?" Thalia asked.

-_-_-_-_-

_I started backing up slowly, trying not to make any sudden movements. I didn't know the first thing about dealing with pit scorpions, and now one was staring me in the face. I was terrified._

-_-_-_-_-

I took a deep breath. "The other week she came home and had a black eye. She wouldn't tell me where it came from, but eventually I got it out of her that it was a fight with some other girl." Thalia's mouth hung open and I continued. "I believed it at first, but now I'm thinking she lied."

Thalia stared at me, bewildered, and shook her head. "No," she said. "Luke wouldn't... he would never... I don't-"

"You're wrong," I said darkly. "He would. He did."

-_-_-_-_-

_I started to turn around and run, but I stopped when I heard something rustle behind me. I felt a pinch in my right calf and I looked down to see the scorpion clinging to my leg, its stinger still impaled in my skin. The next thing I knew, everything went black._

_I didn't even feel my head hit the ground._

-_-_-_-_-

I started to walk out of the restaurant again, but Thalia shouted after me. I stopped, but didn't turn around.

"How do you know he did it?" she shouted stubbornly, her voice hoarse. "How do you know the truth?"

I narrowed my eyes at the brick wall next to the glass door.

"Because I know Luke."

* * *

Okay! Not sure yet if I like making Luke the bad guy, but It's too late to turn back now. :D

Like it? Mind telling me if you do?


	7. I wanna know him

So, it's been a while. I've been busy with school and dance team and choreographing dances for little 4 year old dancers :D Sorryyyy. I decided to try my hand at this story again, though my friend alissa has my copy of TLO, so I can't reread it whenever I like :[

Well, anyways, here's chapter 7. Hope you enjoy :DD

**(SKIP THE REST OF THIS A/N IF YOU JUST WANT TO READ THE STORY :D)**

Did you know that Athena was nicknamed the "owl-eyed" one and the "gray-eyed" one? True fact, I had to find some for a project on a historical figure of your choice :p Did you also know her symbol was the owl? And that I'm obsessed with owls? They're amazing :DD

**I'd like to give an extremely special thanks to all who've reviewed:** Eclipse of Athena, Demi-God daughter of the sea, Thalia Castellan, percabeth-fan-4-ever, pichucherrimteam, leprechaunsarekronos'sservants, PERCABETHGIRL-12, Maurauder, FantasyFan86, filmyfurry, Stolen Silent Stars, Mrs. Jordan Youngblood Powers, Seaweedbrain249, xXBadLuckDuckXx, dancechick307, NCISissnazzy, xXH3ARTXx, Parthenonlover2757, bombplaya3, and September Sorrows

**And to the anonymous reviewers: **Nikki J, puffin0997, Hali, future mrs taylor d. lautner, peaceluvllamas, peacemaker1898, luke, Syd, Massie, and PERcabeth21

[press ctrl + f and type in your username to see if you're there, which you probably are]

It's all yours, Annabeth.

* * *

I realized how much I wanted to know everything about Percy Jackson. I wanted to know what his home videos were like. I wanted to know his middle name. I wanted to know every school he ever went to. I wanted to know how he got interested in swimming. I wanted to know what he thought about me, Thalia, Grover, everyone. I wanted to know his hopes and his dreams, his favorite colors and favorite movies.

The first problem? We were talking less and less.

I'd gotten a new job as a barista downtown in this cozy, quaint bookshop/coffee shop called "Nook's Cranny." I was there every night from 4 to 10, thus meaning I was only free when Percy wasn't. He took orientation classes during the day up at NYU, since it was getting close to the end of July. Every once in a while, he stopped by the shop for a few minutes. My classes hadn't started yet, so I entertained myself by exploring the city. Sometimes alone. Sometimes with Thalia, when she was free. Mostly with Luke.

Which brings me to the second problem. Luke.

Okay, not really a problem. But he doesn't trust or like Percy any more than Percy trusts or likes him. And that's really hard for me, my boyfriend and best friend hating each other. I'd like to hang out with both of them, but Luke makes it pretty clear he doesn't want me hanging out with Percy... and I know better than to bring it up. Though it does bug me that I have to spend every moment he's available, with him. I'm not even sure... no, wait. I shouldn't even think that.

No, I'm going to think it. I can think whatever I want to. It's in my head for God's sake.

I'm not even sure I have fun with Luke anymore. He's too protective. He says it's for 'my own good,' and that 'discipline is good,' but it hurts. Like, physically hurts.

I wonder if anyone's noticed a change in me. I know I have. If I've become more of a realist, I don't know. All I know is that I need to keep my mouth shut.

Because if I don't, Luke will shut it for me. And though that sounds really harsh, I never realize it or think badly of it, because he always makes it up to me. A thousand apologizes, a date to a movie or dinner, lots of kisses, tons of promises 'never to do it again.' And I forgive him, every single time.

I can only wonder when he'll stop apologizing for it.

--------

_Beeeeeeeeeep..._

Wait for it....

The answering machine clicked on. I sighed and closed my eyes again. It was really early- or so I thought.

"Hey Wise Girl, haven't talked to you in a while," Percy's muffled voice said from my answering machine. I removed the pillow I had placed over my ears when the phone rang and sat up.

"Percy!" I shouted happily to the answering machine. But he didn't hear me. Well, duh.

"I was wondering if everything was alright. I talked to Thalia last week, and... well, nevermind. Maybe I should just call back, you're probably sleeping, so..."

I guess something snapped in me. I subconsciously decided it was absolutely imperative that I pick up the phone and talk to Percy. I threw off my covers and ran to the phone, quickly picking up the receiver.

"No, I'm here," I said quickly, my heart pounding.

"You okay?" Percy chuckled. "You sound like you're hyperventilating."

I smiled. I loved the sound of his voice. "I was sleeping," I scolded him. "You woke me up."

Percy laughed. "Sorry, Annabeth. Hey, listen, I don't have any classes until after 2 this afternoon, do you wanna do something? I miss you."

I smiled wider. For some reason, tears sprang to my eyes. "I miss you too, Seaweed Brain," I said. "So yeah, that sounds fine. What time is it?"

"Seven."

"SEVEN??" I shrieked into the phone.

"Ow," Percy said, sounding far away. I guess he pulled his phone away from his face.

I laughed. "I don't think I've ever seen you up before eight in your lifetime."

"Shut up," Percy said from the other line, laughing. "So, meet me at the empire state in about 45 minutes?"

"Sounds great," I said. Percy and I said our goodbyes and I hung up the phone.

--------

Before I realized what I was doing, I had put on a pair of light blue denim shorts and a pink t-shirt.

What was I thinking?

I shook my head and took off the outrageous outfit. I sighed. It may be outrageous, but it was cute. I wanted to wear it, but it wouldn't cover the bruises. Not at all. I settled for a pair of light pink sweatpants and a white long sleeved v-neck. Lucky for me, it wasn't humid or hot. It was actually pretty nice outside.

So I left the apartment with my key and my cell phone. I took the subway and walked the rest of the way, meeting up with Percy in front of the Empire State building. He was getting hot dogs from a vendor on the sidewalk. I walked up and tapped him on the left shoulder. When he looked to his left, I dashed to his right. He looked towards me and smiled. Ignoring the vendor handing him his change, he gave me a huge bear hug, picking me up off the ground and swinging me. It put a little pressure on the bruises on my arms, but it was worth it to see Percy again.

"Hey Wise Girl," he said, smiling.

"Hi Seaweed Brain," I replied. Percy took the change and his hot dogs from the guy and handed one to me.

"Thanks," I said, taking it.

"So, how are things?" Percy asked as we walked down the street.

"Things?" I asked. "Things are... good" I lied. I wasn't going to ruin this for us.

"Are you sure?"

I smiled "Positive. How are your things?"

It took a little prodding, but I finally got Percy to start talking about his life. It sounded like he was having fun. I got lost in his stories of going to the community center to swim, going to class, meeting new people, hanging out with Thalia. I even shared some of my awesome stories of my time spent with Thalia. I told him a little bit about the museums I'd visited when I had the time.

"And you want to visit the Parthenon, don't you?" Percy asked me. I grinned.

"You remembered."

"Of course I did," Percy acted offended. "Have you lost faith in me?"

"Yepp," I teased. I was having a good time. We kept stopping at the carts with vendors selling purses, necklaces, scarves and watches, and being the crazy people we were, mocked some of the merchandise.

We came to a stop in front of a sunglass cart.

Percy's eyes lit up. "Look at me," he said, snatching a pair of huge pink glasses that covered half his face. He put them on and flashed a smile. "I'm Perez Hilton," he said, making funny faces.

"Percy, stop!" I said, laughing uncontrollably. Something about his facial expressions made me feel like a kid when I was with him.

I almost forgot about Luke. Almost. My phone rang. I sighed.

"Hold on," I said to Percy. "Hi Luke," I said sweetly. "How's your day going?"

"Don't pull that crap with me," he snapped back at me. "Where the hell are you?"

I flinched when he spoke. Percy looked at me, concerned.

"I'm out," I said quietly.

"Well I came to your apartment and no one's here."

"I'm sorry," I said miserably. I knew exactly what this meant for the next time I saw him. And I would see him eventually.

"You're gonna be sorry when I find you," Luke growled. He hung up.

Percy wrapped an arm around me when he realized I was crying. _I _hadn't even realized I was crying.

"Hey, hey now," Percy said. "It's okay. Everything's okay."

"I should go," I said, hugging him tightly before letting him go and starting to walk off.

A hand rested on my shoulder, right on a really painful bruise. I winced.

"Let me take you home," Percy said.

* * *

Okay, I've decided this scenario is going to be split into two parts. The first was in Annabeth's POV. The second will be in Percy's POV.

Like it? Mind telling me if you did?


	8. She sheds tears again

Metaphysically,.....

Okay, I really don't know what I was gonna say. I guess I just wanted to use the word "metaphysically."

Okay, for starters, I'd like to apologize a thousand times, over and over and over again, because last month was November. In October, I planned on writing a chapter for each of my chapter pieces and letting you know I'd be disappearing off the face of fanfiction for a month, but I never did that. I'm so sorry I just neglected this story, but I had no choice. I decided to do Nanowrimo this year.

Nanowrimo is a yearly event, in which participants create a 50,000 word novel during the month of November and upload it to the site.

If you know what I'm talking about, good for you, you understand that I decided to participate this year and you forgive me. You can go ahead and skip to the story.

If you have no clue what I'm talking about, then I'll fill you in. In order to win Nanowrimo and write 50,000 words in one month, you must write a minimum of 1,667 words per day. That's like writing a 2-to-3-page chapter for a chapter story, every single day. So I got sucked in, like all participants do. I had no idea what I was getting myself into, but I sure as Hades got addicted, and fast.

Result? Fanfiction neglect. Please find it in your heart to forgive me and not make my poor story suffer because of my mistake. It's been delayed this month simply because I needed a break from writing :]

Anyways, I can't, for the life of me, remember what I was gonna write in the split scenario. So, this is just what I came up with. It makes me frustrated that I forgot my storyline for this stupid chapter. Thanks Nanowrimo. :[

**(SKIP THE REST OF THIS A/N IF YOU JUST WANNA READ THE STORY :D )**

**I'd like to give an extremely special thanks to all who've reviewed:** Eclipse of Athena, Demi-God daughter of the sea, Thalia Castellan, percabeth-fan-4-ever, pichucherrimteam, leprechaunsarekronos'sservants, PERCABETHGIRL-12, Maurauder, FantasyFan86, filmyfurry, Stolen Silent Stars, Mrs. Jordan Youngblood Powers, Seaweedbrain249, xXBadLuckDuckXx, dancechick307, NCISissnazzy, xXH3ARTXx, Parthenonlover2757, bombplaya3, September Sorrows, maxride45, Fanfiction Fanatiction, athenashadow, Percysbro, Silentsole, Tidustide, SeaKing1342, Il0veH0ckey, Adonai63, PJOnHP, ..21, everyoneisMISunderstood, The Evil Hershey Panda, and 11Kayla11

**And to the anonymous reviewers: **Nikki J, puffin0997, Hali, future mrs taylor d. lautner, peaceluvllamas, peacemaker1898, luke, Syd, Massie, PERcabeth21, vê, and Athena'sFaveGrl, and A Fan

[press ctrl + f and type in your username to see if you're there, which you probably are. sorry if you reviewed and you're not up there. please let me know.]

And now, for all you fans who've been patiently (and not-so-patiently) awaiting my update...

Go for it, Percy.

* * *

Annabeth's phone rang.

"Hold on," my beautiful blonde friend said to me, pulling the phone out of her pocket and flipping it open. "Hi Luke," she said sweetly into her phone. "How's your day going?"

She flinched to whatever he said in reply, and I stared at her, confused and worried.

"I'm out," Annabeth said quietly, turning away from me. There was a pause as Luke replied. "I'm sorry," she choked miserably. A tear fell from her eye. There was a growl from Luke's end so loud I could hear it a foot away. Annabeth stood perfectly still for a moment before shutting up her phone and hanging her head. I took a concerned step closer to her and noticed she was positively sobbing. Silently, I wrapped my arm around her shoulders

"Hey, hey now," I said, comforting her. "It's okay. Everything's okay."

"I should go," Annabeth said, wiping tears from her eyes. She gave me a quick, tight hug and began to walk off. I stared after her. She was so broken, so miserable. I couldn't just let her go and meet that creep so he could beat the shit out of her. As Thalia would say, there was no was way in Hades.

I took fast steps to catch up with Annabeth and placed my hand on her shoulder. She stopped walking and winced.

"Let me take you home," I said without hesitation. Annabeth turned around and looked up at me with wide, hopeful eyes. After a moment, she shook her head slowly.

"No, I should go alone," she muttered. "Luke..."

"Is an abusive asshole not worthy of your time?"

Annabeth looked up at me sadly.

"Won't appreciate that I've been hanging out with you," she finished.

"Why not!?" I snapped, angry at Luke. "You're my best friend. Can we not see each other every once in a while!?"

"Luke would think I was cheating on him," Annabeth said softly, interrupting my anger.

"Why?" I asked, taken off-guard by Annabeth's statement. She shrugged and turned to walk away. I grabbed her hand and pulled her back to me. "You're not cheating on him," I said, grabbing her shoulders and trying to make her look at me. "You're doing nothing wrong."

"It's just..." Annabeth stared at the ground and bit her lip, looking very hesitant and like she wanted to say something, but couldn't find the words.

"Just what?" I urged. Annabeth shook her head and shrugged me off.

"I have to go," she said sadly, turning on one heel and walking off again. I quickly caught up with her.

"No you don't," I said, walking alongside her. "You can come back to my apartment, and we can hang out and have fun like we used to."

"I really wish I could, Percy," Annabeth said as she walked. "But..."

"What did Luke say?" I asked, stopping Annabeth in her tracks. "Did he say you had to meet him?

"Well, no..."

"So let's go."

Before Annabeth could protest, I grabbed her hand and led her to the subway. We took a train up a few streets and walked the rest of the way to my apartment building.

--------

I'd unlocked my apartment door and pushed it open when (as Thalia would say) the Fates decided to turn against me.

The second I walked in the door, a certain redhead pounced on me with a flying tackle hug. I laughed and hugged Rachel back, but could practically feel the awkwardness coming from Annabeth

When Rachel let me go, she noticed Annabeth. She scowled and gave her the typical once-over. I don't know what about her appearance shocked Rachel, but the scowl immediately disappeared.

"Hey, are you okay?" she asked, raising a plucked eyebrow. I looked down at Annabeth, who, instead of smirking or glaring at Rachel, was staring at the floor, a sad look on her features.

"Yeah," Annabeth mumbled, which made me angry. Annabeth didn't mumble. At least, she hadn't before Luke. And she most definitely did not mumble in front of her enemies. It was one of her strategies. She was smart like that, never letting her guard down. But it seemed like that had all changed.

"Are you sure?" Rachel persisted, being her usual stubborn self. "Because you don't look okay."

"I'm _fine_," Annabeth snapped, looking up at Rachel with hurt and tear-filled eyes.

Rachel stepped back, shocked, before a determined look fell onto her face.

"You two better come inside," she said like she owned the place.

We entered my apartment and sat down on the couch. Rachel joined us, her take-charge attitude already beginning to appear. Annabeth crossed her arms and looked at the ground, biting her lip. I glanced, concerned, over at my blonde friend. Rachel cleared her throat.

"Now, what's wrong?" she asked Annabeth, who ignored her.

"If you don't tell her, I will," I told Annabeth. "And you know me. I never have the story straight."

Annabeth looked up at us and sighed.

"Percy, please leave," Rachel said, not taking her eyes from Annabeth.

"What!?" I protested. "Why?"

"Girl talk time," was her reply. I didn't move.

"There's no way," I said. "Annabeth is _my _friend. You two don't even get along."

Rachel looked up at me, her shocking green eyes harsh.

"I have a feeling we'll get along just fine today," she said smoothly. I huffed and got up. I went into my bedroom and shut the door angrily.

It was stupid. Annabeth _hated _Rachel. There was no chance that she'd open up and tell Rachel everything. Rachel couldn't get out of her the confession- the one thing that would confirm my suspicions. That Luke had been hitting her. I assumed it was true, and Annabeth hadn't told me I was blowing things out of proportion, so what was stopping me from doing something about it?

The truth. I didn't know the truth. No matter how much I didn't want to believe it, maybe Luke _wasn't _abusing his girlfriend. Maybe they were just fighting a lot, I didn't know. All I knew was that it was affecting my best friend, changing her.

After a few minutes, I realized being angry was pointless.

And then I discovered that if I was really quiet, I could hear what was going on in my living room.

"Annabeth," Rachel was saying. "It doesn't make sense for you to lie if everything's fine."

"No, Rachel, it doesn't. But maybe I don't want you to know everything about me," Annabeth replied, sounding more like her old self then she had in the past weeks. "I mean, I know nothing about _you_."

Listening to the two girls talking, it was easy to see how they were enemies. They both wanted to be the most stubborn, the most important. Rachel acted on impulse, Annabeth thought things through. They each wanted to have the most callous attitude, the most mysterious statements.

It was also easy to see that they could have been best friends. They were both extremely logical. They knew how to solve problems. Rachel knew that she didn't need a guy to be complete, and so did Annabeth, at least she used to. They were both stubborn. They both liked to argue. So they could have been friends, but for some reason they wanted to hate each other.

I'd never understand girls.

"Okay, you really wanna know more about me?" Rachel snapped. "How's this. My mother is caddy and obsessed with her image. I grew up with impossible-to-reach standards and expectations from her. My father's rich and cold, and never cares about me. He only cares about what I could have been if I let him send me to finishing school. I have no freedom in my own home."

Annabeth was silent for a few moments.

"My mother's a genius, not to brag" she began, sounding strong. "She can solve a Rubik's cube in 2 minutes and can fix any computer problem you have. But she doesn't want to help you with boy troubles or hair issues. She'll help you with homework and papers, sure, but if you want any substance for the real world, you're out of luck."

"Oh?" Rachel urged.

"And my dad's a lunatic," Annabeth continued, getting louder. "I love him, but he's insane. He's got great skills and smarts, but he's never there to be a father figure. Never there to discipline. He's a sap, and can't keep a large amount of money for over a week to save his life."

"Oh, so you're saying that a dad who can't save money and doesn't discipline is better than a rich, hate-filled father!?" Rachel shouted.

"YES!"

"Oh really? So you'd rather your dad abuse you, then!?"

Annabeth didn't say a word. The living room was silent for a minute.

"Struck a nerve there, didn't I?" Rachel asked after a moment or two.

"You didn't tell me your father abused you," Annabeth said softly, her voice back to the sad monotone it'd been in for a week.

"Yeah, well you haven't told me why you're so depressed all the time," Rachel replied.

Annabeth was silent.

"Annabeth," Rachel said comfortingly. "You should look at Percy more often. You can see in his eyes that he's worried about you. You can tell that he cares and wants you to be happy."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I would have never expected Rachel to be talking so sweetly to Annabeth. She sounded... well, mature.

"I _can't_ be happy," Annabeth whispered, her voice hoarse.

"Yes you can," Rachel reassured her. "Everyone has a right to be happy."

"Apparently, not me."

"Why not?"

For a while, Annabeth didn't make a sound. Neither did Rachel. I was about to open up my bedroom door, pretend like I hadn't heard a word they'd said, and ask if they were done yet.

That's when I heard the crying.

She was sniffling. It was soft crying, but it was obviously crying. Not sobbing, but crying.

"Annabeth, you can tell me," Rachel spoke up over Annabeth's tears.

Annabeth started to answer, but I stopped listening. I couldn't hear her say it. I was still too shocked that I'd heard my best friend crying, _again_.

I couldn't even comprehend that she was crying over the answer to my question, the one thing that would give me an excuse to beat up her no-good boyfriend. I would have been ecstatic that she was about to admit it, except that Annabeth was crying.

_Again_.

* * *

Whoa. That just kinda came pouring out of me. I like it.

**A memo:** My extended family is coming in from Baltimore tomorrow. That, along with parental units, will cause me to be unable to spend every waking moment of my winter-break days on the computer. So, this might be all you get for a week or two. But, since I know I've been horrid to you all by making you wait for this update, I'll try extra-extra hard to get on and give you the next chapter.  
The one you've all been waiting for.  
The one where Percy gets pissed :D

Like it? Mind telling me if you do?


	9. She's waiting for yesterday

**I'd like to give an extremely special thanks to all who've reviewed:** Eclipse of Athena, Demi-God daughter of the sea, Thalia Castellan, percabeth-fan-4-ever, pichucherrimteam, leprechaunsarekronos'sservants, PERCABETHGIRL-12, Maurauder, FantasyFan86, filmyfurry, Stolen Silent Stars, Mrs. Jordan Youngblood Powers, Seaweedbrain249, xXBadLuckDuckXx, dancechick307, NCISissnazzy, xXH3ARTXx, Parthenonlover2757, bombplaya3, September Sorrows, maxride45, Fanfiction Fanatiction, athenashadow, Percysbro, Silentsole, Tidustide, SeaKing1342, Il0veH0ckey, Adonai63, PJOnHP, ..21, everyoneisMISunderstood, The Evil Hershey Panda, 11Kayla11, THA musIc GuY, Spunkalovely (ILOVEYOU), ThaliaGrace04, and LabyrinthOfDarkness

**And to the anonymous reviewers: **Nikki J, puffin0997, Hali, future mrs taylor d. lautner, peaceluvllamas, peacemaker1898, luke, Syd, Massie, PERcabeth21, vê, and Athena'sFaveGrl, and A Fan, Ihateluke, and Chloe/Annabeth

[press ctrl + f and type in your username to see if you're there, which you probably are. sorry if you reviewed and you're not up there. please let me know.]

*drumroll...*

And now...  
The chapter you've all been waiting for.....  
It's a long one....  
Okay, even I'm excited....

PERCY'S POINT OF VIEWWWWW (yes, I know I've skipped Annabeth's. you all will get over it, considering the nature of this chapter, and I have a feeling she will too. :D)

* * *

There was a soft knock on my bedroom door. I was still sitting against it, blocking out the noise coming from the living room. There was another knock, louder this time. I didn't know how long I'd been sitting there, my senses numb, but when I looked out my window the sun was setting.

_'Wait a minute, that doesn't make any sense_,' my brain told me. '_We woke up at, like, 7 in the morning. How can it already be 6 at night?'_

_'Well, if Annabeth and I spent almost all day out walking the streets_,' I responded in my head, '_that would mean it was about 2 or 3 in the afternoon when we got home- er, when we got to my apartment.'_

_'And who knows how long they've been talking_,' my brain agreed. '_When did you get so good at logic?'_

_'Annabeth would be proud,_'I told my brain, ignoring its question.

I stood up slowly, testing my muscles. Yeah, my feet were definitely asleep- just like the rest of my body, which had decided to go into a vegetative state as to not comprehend what the girls had been saying in the other room. I turned around and opened my bedroom door a crack.

There stood Rachel, sporting a slight frown and a tear-tracked face. Her eyes were misty and she was biting her lip.

"Yes?" I asked quietly, my voice sounding weird.

"Percy..." Rachel shut her eyes and held out her arms like she needed a hug. I opened the door wider and stepped out into the dimly lit hallway. I wrapped my arms around Rachel and she snuggled into me, burying her head in my shoulder. Neither of us spoke. After a few moments, Rachel lifted her head and looked up at me. She had tears in the corners of her eyes.

"Percy..." she began, shaking her head in disbelief, "You should see the bruises. They're just... horrible. Mine were never that bad."

I had a feeling Rachel knew I'd been eavesdropping earlier, since she'd never told me about her father hitting her, but I let it go. She obviously understood how desperate I was to know what was wrong with Annabeth.

"So it's true?" I replied. "Luke-"

"You should probably let Annabeth tell you herself," Rachel interrupted, pulling out of my arms. She brushed her hair out of her eyes and wiped her tears off her face. "I'm going to go."

"Be safe," I told her. She laughed.

"I will," she promised. I stayed in the hall and stared at the wall as Rachel stepped back into the living room. I heard the rustling of my couch and someone step on my wood floor, then silence. When I peeked around the corner, I saw Rachel and Annabeth, but it seemed like I was in a different universe.

They were hugging. Hugging like the best friends you see in the movies, Annabeth burying her head in Rachel's shoulder and Rachel patting Annabeth on the back comfortingly. It was really strange. But it also made me feel warm inside, like I was suddenly standing in the sun.

Rachel grabbed her brown shoulder bag and left my apartment. Annabeth sat back down on my couch and buried her face in her hands. I walked into my living room and noticed it was dark. When the sun had been up, they didn't need the lights. But now that it was sunset, it was getting dark in my apartment. I walked over and sat down next to Annabeth.

"Wise Girl?" I asked quietly.

No response. I leaned closer.

"Annabeth?" I tried again. "Look at me. Please?" Annabeth lifted her head from her hands but didn't look at me, instead choosing to stare at my floor. I tried to get her to turn her head, but she just shut her eyes tight and shuddered. The look on her face reminded me of another, identical time we'd been together in an apartment (though it was hers) when there had been tears on the corners of her eyes and I had been concerned. I resisted the urge to remind her about it, to bring up our kiss. It seemed like so long ago, though it was probably only a month or so.

I nudged Annabeth and tried to catch her eye. She refused to look at me. I swallowed a lump in my throat. I needed her to look at me.

"Please, Annabeth," I pleaded. "Look at me. Talk to me."

She shook her head slightly, her blonde curls swinging in front of her face. I brushed the hair behind her ears and grasped her shoulders. She winced, biting her lip and looking away from me.

"Please tell me what you told Rachel," I begged. Annabeth didn't answer me. Fine. I would just have to start talking. I'd never been the one to do all the talking, but it couldn't be that hard. I'd find something out eventually. I always did.

I gripped Annabeth's shoulders tighter.

"Did he hit you?" I asked, getting right to the point she'd been avoiding for weeks. I had to hear her say it. To tell me the truth.

A silent tear slid down my friend's cheek. I got angry. Not angry at her, but angry at Luke, for being an asshole. Angry at myself, for not seeing it earlier. I shook Annabeth slightly, still clutching her shoulders.

"Did he hit you!?" I asked again, more forcefully. Annabeth didn't respond.

"Annabeth!" I shouted. She flinched. "Has he been hitting you!? I need you to tell me!"

My beautiful friend nodded once, her eyes still shut tight and her teeth biting at her bottom lip.

"Oh gods, Annabeth," I said, reminding myself of Thalia. I refrained from saying 'I knew it,' even though I really wanted to. "Why didn't you tell anyone sooner?"

Annabeth shrugged and hung her head, her body hiccuping with dry sobs. I'm sure tears would have been pouring from her eyes if she'd had any left. I picked her up bridal style and carried her down my hall and into my bedroom. I left the lights off and set her down gently on my bed. I brushed back the hair that covered her face and kissed her forehead. She lied down and curled up into a ball, her body trembling violently as she cried invisible tears. I stood up straight.

"I'll take care of this," I told her. "I promise." She made a move like she was going to protest, but I stopped her.

"Do you really want to be with someone who does this to you?" I snapped quietly. That kept her from saying whatever it was she had been about to say (even though she glared at me, which made me happy) and caused her to break out in hysterical shuddering again.

"Get some sleep," I said calmly, stroking the side of her face. I took the few short steps to my open doorway and froze, listening for anything unusual.

A few moments passed. The rustling of Annabeth clothes against my comforter had stopped. She wasn't moving, but she was breathing heavily.

"Thank you, Seaweed Brain," she whispered shakily. I nodded and walked out into the hall, shutting the door behind me.

--------

I was mad. No, I was more than mad. I was Furious. Complete with a capital F.

I knew the truth. That's all I needed. So I wasn't surprised with myself when I made a beeline for my home phone and dialed a number I had forgotten I even knew.

"Percy," Luke stated coldly when he picked up the phone. I guess he had caller ID.

"Luke," I replied in a monotone.

"Any idea where my girlfriend is?"

"Not a clue," I lied.

"Right. Well, nice chat. I have something to do, so if you see Annabeth-"

"We need to catch up," I interrupted.

"What?"

"It's been too long since we had a friendly encounter," I said, faking sincerity. "We should get together and catch up."

"Uh..." Luke sounded suspicious. "Okay, then. When?"

"Now."

"Right now?"

"Yes, I just said that," I said, laughing a fake laugh.

"Where?"

"How about Rusty's Depot?"

Okay, sure. Wherever the hell that came from. At least we both knew where the restaurant was, I guess.

"Fine," Luke replied. "Wherever the hell that came from."

Sometimes it was scary how much Luke and I were alike. Annabeth used to tell me that when we were kids, back at camp. I'd never wanted to believe her.

"So, meet me there in 20 minutes?" I suggested, feigning lightheartedness.

"Sure thing," Luke replied before hanging up the phone. I did the same.

---------

I'm not one to plan. If it were something unimportant, I would probably just go up and punch Luke in the face. But I knew that wouldn't do anything, and that Annabeth would want me to think it through.

If I would have finished my thoughts, I probably could have ended up with a pretty ridiculous scheme. But I kept getting distracted. My anger, the other people on the subway- something always kept me from finishing my ideas. It would have been a plan worthy of Annabeth's brilliant mom. I'd get some kind of recording device into the restaurant and get Luke to admit that he was an undeserving, mentally disturbed, abusive asshole.

Simple, right?

Well, too bad I didn't ever get a recording device or a common sense. I stepped into Rusty's Depot on Park Avenue without any real idea what I was going to say or do. With the subway trains being extremely on time and my excessive need to walk out my anger, I got to the restaurant in 16 minutes, with a few extra minutes to spare. I went in and sat down at the bar.

Don't freak out. I knew I was underage. I just asked for water. But I figured Luke and I wouldn't really want to sit and chat. I would probably get right to the point. Or maybe I would play innocent. I didn't really know what I was going to do- like I said, I'm not a planner. I don't think things through. All I knew at that point was that I was angry.

The restaurant was crowded with people enjoying their dinners. A minute passed. Then another. Finally, Luke Castellan walked through the door. He spotted me and came to sit down next to me.

"Scotch," he said to the bartender. "On the rocks." I looked over at him.

He still had the same blonde hair and cold blue eyes as he did when I was younger, when I used to think he was my friend. He was 17 the last time I saw him, and he was 4 years older than me, which meant he was now 21. The years had added something to his features, though what it was I couldn't put my finger on. Anger? Resentment? The scar under his right eye looked deeper somehow, and I still didn't know where he'd gotten it from. It raked down his cheek and stopped at his jawbone. _I_ thought the scar was sinister and ugly, but I could see how some people would think it made him look tough or handsome. He was wearing a green polo shirt and nice jeans, and he looked very put-together.

I'm sure you had to look presentable when you were beating your girlfriend. If you didn't, it might raise suspicions.

Luke and I sat there for a few uncomfortable moments, not saying anything. The bartender brought him his drink, and Luke asked me if I was gonna get anything.

"No," I replied. "I'm underage." I would love to get a drink, but come on. I'm not that stupid.

"Oh, that's right," Luke scoffed. "You're still a teenager."

The way he said it made my eyes narrow. The bartender looked over at us suspiciously as I glared at Luke.

"I'm an adult, Luke," I said. "18 isn't a 'teenager.'"

Luke chuckled and shrugged. "Fine. Whatever. So what did you want to talk about?"

"Anything," I replied. "What have you been up to? I didn't know you lived in New York."

Luke stared at me doubtfully, but he didn't let his guard down. Yet.

"I have for around 5 months now."

"Where were you before that?"

"San Francisco."

"Oh," I replied, finding something I could use. "What for?"

"Ann... uh, a friend."

I, of course, knew he was gonna say 'Annabeth.' I made a promise to myself that I wouldn't mention that Luke _was_ actually a crazy stalker to Annabeth, who had that conversation with me months ago.

"Oh."

"Yeah," he said uncomfortably. "I was staying with a friend. Then I bought an apartment up here."

"Well, how do you like the city?" I asked him, playing innocent.

"It's nice." He smirked. "It reminds me of that stupid summer camp we used to go to."

"Stupid?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. Everyone who had a heart loved that camp. "You were a counselor."

Luke shrugged but didn't say anything. We sat there for another few minutes in an awkward silence.

"What do you do during the day?" I asked him, taking a drink of my water. Luke narrowed his eyes at me suspiciously.

"What's up with the interrogation, dude?" he asked me, totally clueless to the fact that I knew about what he did to my best friend.

"Just wondering, man," I replied, shrugging my shoulders. Luke smirked and rolled his eyes, giving me a condescending look like he was trying to make me feel younger and less tough. Oh, how things have changed.

I skipped any more small talk.

"So, Luke," I said nonchalantly. "How are you and Annabeth?" I looked over and could have sworn I saw anger flash in his eyes. But then it was gone.

"We're spectacular," he hissed. "What's it to you?"

I grinned. I'd struck a nerve. "I was just wondering, man. Calm down. She can never hang out, so I was just assuming you two were spending a lot of time together."

"Yeah, we are," Luke replied harshly.

"How much, would you say?"

"I don't know, we just spend time together. I'd say once a day. Why?"

"I'm sure that puts a bruise on her social life," I said, ignoring Luke's question.

Luke froze. "What's that supposed to mean?" he asked slowly. I pretended to be confused.

"What?" I replied. "I was just pointing out that she probably wants to spend some time with Thalia, or something."

"Nice try, Jackson. What are you up to?"

I ignored him again and kept going. "I mean, doesn't it feel like you're _abusing_ the fact that she wants to spend time with you?" I smiled inside my head, but I was dead serious on the outside, not pretending to joke around.

Luke glared. "And you put it like that because...?"

"I know, Luke."

"Know what?" he replied coldly.

"Oh, I think you know," I sneered.

"I don't know," Luke assured me.

"I know you know," was my reply. Why we were playing one of those stupid 3rd grade word games, I'd never know. _Know_. There's that word again.

We stared at each other for a few seconds. I saw the first punch coming. I wasn't an angry little 13 year old anymore, and so I didn't back down. I caught Luke's fist the same way he'd caught mine all those years ago.

"Why so angry all of a sudden, Luke?" I taunted. "Did I say something?"

"You act like you know something," Luke said, trying to punch me again. I caught that one too. My defense had gotten better. The bartender looked over at us and watched us, waiting for someone to actually get hit.

I pressed his fists into his chest, bending his arms back awkwardly (a move I'd learn from my step-dad back in high school). "I _do _know something," I hissed in his face. "I know you've been abusing my best friend."

"You've got no proof," Luke snapped. People were staring to look over at us. The employees watched the bartender, who was staring at us calmly.

"Not yet," I replied. "But I will."

"Ha!" Luke scoffed, ripping his fists from my grasp. "Have fun finding the nonexistent proof that Annabeth's easy to hit!"

I looked up from Luke's face to see that the bartender was standing closer and pulling something out of his pocket. I though it was a cell phone until its gold surface glinted in the light.

A police badge.

The bartender winked at me and mouthed the words 'security cameras.' He pulled out a cell phone (it was a cell phone this time) and dialed three numbers. I looked back down at Luke, my face unchanging.

"Oh, you've been hitting Annabeth?" I asked.

"You know that!"

"And you think there won't be any proof? How about the bruises all over her arms?" I suggested. "Or the black eyes?"

"Yeah, right. Like _she'd _ever tell you the truth. She'd make up some lie. She loves me too much."

"Oh, but she already told me, Luke Castellan," I snapped. Luke looked taken aback, but just for a second.

"Oh, did she now?" He growled, oblivious to the fact that I'd just used his full name and too wrapped up in himself to wonder why. "When?"

"Today."

"I thought you said you didn't know where she was," Luke said, his eyes narrowed. Before I could respond, he threw an unexpected punch at my stomach. I doubled over, coughing. The cop started for us, but I stopped him with my eyes. I silently pleaded that he wouldn't walk over to us just yet. He got the message and stopped, but kept a close eye on Luke, who tried to sucker punch me in the face. I pushed away his arm and slugged him in the shoulder. It made a wicked cracking sound and Luke winced in pain.

_That's right, Luke_, I thought to myself. _I'm not the stupid middle-schooler you harassed all those years ago. Now I'm tough. I've got scorpion venom in my blood. Whose fault is that?_

I hadn't realized how much I had wanted to punch Luke until I was ranting inside my head. I stopped. I was breathing heavily.

"That's because I wanted to make sure you really were hitting her," I replied after a few moments of catching my breath. I paused. "You _have _been hitting her, right?" I asked, sensing the police-man-slash-bartender getting closer to us.

"Yes!" Luke shouted furiously, forgetting about everyone around us, and unaware of the cop behind him. "I've been hitting her because she's an easy target! You know that! _Why _do you keep asking me!?"

"Because I want everyone in the audience to have the story straight," I replied smugly.

"Audience?" Luke asked, confused. He turned around to find the policeman staring him down with a pair of handcuffs and furrowed eyebrows. The restaurant was silent as he snapped the handcuffs onto Luke's wrists. You could hear a police siren wailing in the distance, getting closer.

"Luke Castellan," he said in that deathly-calm-and-scary way that cops always tended to have. "You're going to be taken down to the station for questioning."

"W-what did I do?" Luke stammered, looking pale. I could practically hear him wishing and praying in his mind that the cop hadn't heard our conversation. It was a stupid wish.

"You're being temporarily arrested for assaulting the innocent and physical abuse, which you admitted to."

"What about him!?" Luke tried to remind the cop, gesturing towards me. "He punched me too!"

"From what I saw," the cop replied, a mischievous glint in his eye, "the young man was simply defending himself." A police car pulled up outside the restaurant and parked.

"Let's go," the cop said to Luke, leading him out the door. Instead of looking defeated or regretful like I'd hoped, Luke just looked vengeful and callous as he was led out of the building, glaring at me the whole way. The second the glass door slammed closed, the whole restaurant busted into cheering.

I couldn't help but smile to myself. Sure, the arresting was a bit dramatic, but it worked out perfectly. I got to punch the guy and got away with it. He was now in trouble with the cops, so he wouldn't be bothering anyone for a while.

Another cop came in and took my name, address, and phone number, then left telling me two things. One, I was free to go. Two, I would be called in for questioning in a few days.

I nodded at him as he left, shook myself off, and prepared for the subway ride back to my apartment, where (hopefully) Annabeth would be asleep.

* * *

So, that was the chapter that was my inspiration to write the story. Well, not all of it (that I just wrote), but the part with Annabeth at the beginning :D

It was so exciting to write this, you guys. I don't care if it was cheesy or unrealistic (nor do I know if it was...), I had so much fun :]

I didn't have time to proofread this, because I was too excited to get it up. Would any of you mind letting me know if you find any mistakes? :D Thanks!

Like it? Mind telling me if you do?


	10. He's in my dreams

**I'd like to give an extremely special thanks to all who've reviewed:** Eclipse of Athena, Demi-God daughter of the sea, Thalia Castellan, percabeth-fan-4-ever, pichucherrimteam, leprechaunsarekronos'sservants, PERCABETHGIRL-12, Maurauder, FantasyFan86, filmyfurry, Stolen Silent Stars, Mrs. Jordan Youngblood Powers, Seaweedbrain249, xXBadLuckDuckXx, dancechick307, NCISissnazzy, xXH3ARTXx, Parthenonlover2757, bombplaya3, September Sorrows, maxride45, Fanfiction Fanatiction, athenashadow, Percysbro, Silentsole, Tidustide, SeaKing1342, Il0veH0ckey, Adonai63, PJOnHP, ..21, everyoneisMISunderstood, The Evil Hershey Panda, 11Kayla11, THA musIc GuY, Spunkalovely (ILOVEYOU MEGARA!), ThaliaGrace04, LabyrinthOfDarkness, anonymousbooklover, crazybookworm95, Lisbry, Saf222, Colorful Catastrophe (Thank you times 3, puffin 0997!), Tatiana Lopes, wisegirlindisguise, Sargent fuzzy bear, AchilliesOfGreece, sonofthegods, and MiHeadIsFullOfKelp

**And to the anonymous reviewers: **Nikki J, puffin0997, Hali, future mrs taylor d. lautner, peaceluvllamas, peacemaker1898, luke, Syd, Massie, PERcabeth21, vê, and Athena'sFaveGrl, and A Fan, Ihateluke, Chloe/Annabeth, NoyP, fdsg (I really like this one :D), Megan, annabeth chase, and SmoothieBlender.

[press ctrl + f and type in your username to see if you're there, which you probably are. sorry if you reviewed and you're not up there. please let me know.]

Thank you guys, really. So much. You make me so much happier :D  
I remember being on the phone with my friend and I was like "Look at all these reviews I got!! AHH!!"  
His response was "I can't see them, stupid," but I digress.

THANK YOU ALL **SOOOO **MUCH!

Now, onto very serious matters. This movie came out last night/this morning at midnight (btw, I didn't get to sleep till 3:00. .). I took my friends to see this movie, and I was giggling and squealing and generally freaking out the whole time. It was The Percy Jackson Movie. I leaned over and whispered "we're at the Percy Jackson movie!" to my friend Jordan every 5 seconds, and he was getting really pissed at me :] But it was so exciting, you guys. An extremely wonderful movie. I can't contain my enthusiasm for it. It may not match the book very well, but it's still a SPECTACULAR movie. You should go see it. Right now. :]

So, with that over, we move on...

Oh, forgot to say that the little part about the 'audience' from the last chapter was actually based off the PJatO books.  
The Sea of Monsters, I think.  
No. Wait. Maybe it was The Titans Curse...

And now, the _(I believe so, I'm not sure yet...)_ **second-to-last** chapter:

Annabeth's POV. Have fun, Wise Girl. :]

* * *

I sat on Percy's bed. Okay, no, I collapsed on Percy's bed and curled up into a pathetic little ball, all crumpled and disheveled. For a moment, the apartment was silent. I wondered how Percy was going to "take care" of this. Then I heard him talking to someone. It took me a while, but eventually I could make out what he was saying. He seemed to be talking to someone on the phone.

"It's been too long since we had a friendly encounter," he was saying, sounding really fake-happy. "We should get together and catch up."

He paused and listened to the response.

"Now," Percy replied to the person on the other end before pausing. "Yes, I just said that," he continued, laughing coldly. I wondered vaguely who he was talking to. If only I knew. I could have figured it out if I wanted to, it wasn't that hard to realize. But I was drained of energy. I just wanted to lie down. By the time I had enough sense to comprehend what Percy was going to do, it was too late.

"How about Rusty's Depot?" Percy asked, snapping me out of my thoughts. "So, meet me there in 20 minutes?" There was another pause, then Percy hung up.

I heard him rustling around in his room for a few minutes, and then his footsteps traveled out into the hall, down through the living room, and out the door.

_Click. _The sound of the lock snapping shut traveled through the walls and I let my head fall to Percy's pillow. I immediately fell asleep.

--------

In my dream, I was standing on the dock at my old summer camp. I was looking out at the ocean, and saw an old wooden raft sailing towards me. I waited a few moments, and when the raft was almost to me, I looked around. Standing behind me were all the summer campers, over a hundred of them. Up at the front was Thalia, back when she was 16, dressed in black skinny jeans and a black t-shirt that read 'Death to Barbie' in fancy, white, cursive writing. Her short, black hair was choppy and she wore skull earrings. She had on that ridiculous makeup that made her look like a raccoon, and she looked just like she had back when she attended camp with me and Percy. In other words, she looked like death.

Also present close to the dock: Percy's best friend Grover Underwood (a friend who was very close to me) and his girlfriend Juniper (I considered her a good friend), both looking like they had at 14. Grover was tall and gangly, with curly brownish-reddish hair and an almost-bad case of acne. He wore a light brown shirt that read 'Got Earth?' in green letters above a picture of the planet Earth. He had on baggy jeans and shoes that looked too big to be for real feet. Juniper was dressed in a purple sundress and she was barefoot. Her toes were painted in a leaf-green color and her long, amber-colored hair was tied in a side ponytail with a dark green ribbon.

They and the hundred-or-so campers behind them were looking at me expectantly, like they were waiting for me to do something. Thalia looked comforting, but also like she was in disbelief. Her blue eyes were piercing and I felt like she was accusing me of lying. What I was lying about, I had no idea.

Juniper stared at me, her elfish features upturned and scowling. Her expression was harsh, like I'd just kicked her grandmother. I wanted to feel bad, but I didn't know what I'd done. So I moved on to Grover.

Grover stared at me sadly, like he missed me. I guess I hadn't seen him in years, and I missed him too, but still. There was something else behind his sappy look. Maybe it was dread. Whatever it was, Grover had a look on his face that said not only was he missing me, he would miss me when I was gone.

Gone? Gone where? Where was I going? And why did everyone look like they did when I was 14 and going to summer camp? Why did their expressions make me feel like I was about to save them or destroy them, like they were counting on me?

The raft floated up to the dock and stopped with out an anchor or rope, like magic. There were two people standing on it.

The first one I noticed was Percy Jackson, but not the Percy Jackson I knew now. It was him, back when we were 16 (he wasn't 13 here, like I would've expected him to be. That seemed to be our friends' gimmick). His floppy black hair was unruly and messy like it had been the last day I'd seen him, three years ago. His deep green eyes sparkled and he was wearing a green t-shirt to match them, along with a pair of faded, comfortable looking jeans and his favorite white tennis shoes. He was smiling and had his hands on his hips, but he was frozen in place like someone had pressed his pause button.

The second person on the raft was Luke Castellan. Since he was gone from camp when Percy and I were 16, he looked like he did in the present day. He was wearing a white button down and nice dark blue jeans. He wore black loafers and a silver watch on his right hand. He looked sharp, except for his face. He had ridiculous bags under his eyes and the scar under his right eye looked red and tender, like it had been recently re-opened. He had an evil gleam in his eye, and looking over his appearance, I wanted to scoff in disgust. He didn't look handsome at all. He looked like he was hiding a secret and would act ruthless and cutthroat to make sure it stayed a secret. I seemed to be seeing him for what he truly was, which I really didn't have any desire to see.

"_Choose..._" an unseen voice whispered as it floated along in the wind.

"What?" I asked it.

"_Choose,_" it whispered again. The campers behind me held their breath and I looked back at Percy and Luke on the raft. I smiled, completely free of any fear or stress, and pointed slowly at Percy. There was cheering and laughing and shouting. I grinned as Luke glared at me. I wasn't afraid. I didn't have any reason to be afraid. I saw, out of the corner of my eye, some kind of octopus/shark-type sea creature jump out of the water and swallow Luke whole, but I wasn't really paying attention. I was too focused on Percy.

His form had begun to glow. I dropped my hand that had been pointing at him as the landscape around him faded.

The scene shifted. Suddenly, Percy and I were standing at the camp's outdoor mess hall, where little white holiday lights had been strung all around the Greek-inspired columns and the tables. Colored lanterns were hung in the trees and off the columns, shedding soft purple, yellow, green, blue, and orange light over everything and everyone. A DJ booth had been hooked up to an outdoor generator and was playing music. People were all around us on the marble and the grass, dancing and laughing and generally having a good time.

Percy stopped glowing and his form un-paused.

"Well, Wise Girl?" he said.

"'Well,' _what_, Seaweed Brain?" I said without thinking. To be honest, I didn't even know I said anything, and I wouldn't have unless I'd heard it. I looked down at my clothes. I was wearing an orange, long sleeved t-shirt and faded jean shorts, along with a pair of brown sandals. I hadn't worn that outfit in years and wouldn't wear it now, especially not with all the bruises and cuts all over my body.

"_Well,_" Percy replied, "I believe you owe me a dance."

Dance?

Oh, I get it. It was a flashback. I recognized everything now. The mess hall had been transformed into the farewell party for the older campers. It was the last day of camp, three years ago, and Percy and I and out friends had all met up at the party.

"Oh, do I?" I asked, giggling.

"Yeah, you do," Percy said, smirking. His green eyes sparkled as he led me to the marble area in front of the DJ booth that was being used as a dance floor. The fast paced pop song ended as we stepped closer, and a pretty, almost-slow song replaced it.

Percy looked nervous, though he was trying to hide it. I noticed a little anxious expression on his features that made him look younger, like when I'd met him when he first came to camp. He rubbed the back of neck then hesitantly placed his hands around my waist. I laughed and slid mine onto his shoulders. We started swaying to the music, smiling like idiots.

_"She's blood, flesh and bone  
No tucks or silicone  
She's touch, smell, sight, taste and sound..."_

Percy coughed nervously but relaxed a little. We settled into a comfortable movement.

"What are you gonna do once camp's done?" I asked. "Like, any ideas for school?"

"Well, I'm thinking about being an oceanographer," he replied. He looked at me sadly. "What about you? Are there any good schools in 'Frisco?"

I frowned. I'd had to move from New York 2 years ago, all the way across the country to San Francisco. I hated it. I missed New York. And even though my dad let me come back for summer camp, it still wasn't the same.

"Yeah, there are a few, but the best architectural programs are here in New York," I said wistfully. "I'll find something, I guess."

Percy didn't say anything. He looked around at the woods and the other campers. I looked up and gazed around, too.

"I'm gonna miss this place," he said softly, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. I followed his example and found myself resting my head on his shoulder. He seemed surprised at first, then relaxed and held me tighter as we 'danced.'

_"She's got the best of everything  
What could a guy like me ever really offer?  
She's perfect as she can be, why should I even bother?"_

"I'm gonna miss it too," I said.

Percy pulled away and looked at me with those ocean green eyes. I thought about how he looked everyday when he was swimming in the lake and how he always smelled like sea salt.

_"She calls to speak to me..."_

His black hair fell over one of his eyes and he smiled a lopsided, goofy smile. I felt myself grinning back.

"Wise Girl?" he whispered

_"I freeze immediately..."_

"Yes?" I replied softly.

Percy took a shaky breath. "You're what I'm gonna miss most about this place."

"_'Cause what she says sounds so unreal..."_

Percy started leaning forward, and before I could think about it, I was too.

_"And somehow I can't believe  
That anything should happen..."_

"I'm gonna miss you too, Seaweed Brain."

_"I know where I belong  
And nothing's gonna happen..."_

Our lips connected in a sweet and innocent first kiss, and our bodies seemed to fit together as his hand made its way to touch the back of my head. I ran my fingers through his hair. When we parted, we found ourselves singing the lyrics to the song we'd been dancing to.

_"'Cause she's so high  
High above me, she's so lovely  
She's so high, like Cleopatra, Joan of Arc, or Aphrodite  
She's so high, high above me"_

--------

The flashback/dream melted away into black nothingness. I sat up and ran my hands over my face. It took my eyes a second to adjust to their surroundings, but eventually they realized that we were in Percy's room.

I looked over at the clock. 8:27 p.m. I swung my feet around and hopped off the bed. Making my way into the living room, I noticed all the lights were off. I sat down on the couch. Where was Percy?

Then it hit me.

He'd gone to 'take care of it.'

Well, hell.

I ran to his phone and dialed his cell number. It rang once. Then twice. Three times.

"Hey, it's Percy. If you leave your name and your reason for calling, then I might just get back to-"

_Click._ I hung up. Crap. He didn't answer. Where was he?

I spent a few minutes pacing and worrying and thinking up impossibly ridiculous scenarios before realizing how irrational I was being and sitting back down on the couch. I reached for the remote and turned on the TV. Might as well do something to pass the time before Percy got back, right?

I turned on the History channel. I tuned into a documentary/featurette about Greek mythology that was half over. Apparently, it was about Pandora's box.

Er- _pithos_, which meant 'jar.' The program was telling me about how most of the demons that haunted mankind- fear, death, sickness, hunger, and Greek monsters like _empousai _and _Cyclopes_- were trapped in the jar. Also trapped in the jar was _Elpis_- hope- that could only be released by a son of man, meaning no immortal could give up Elpis. The narrator guy talked about how half-god, half-mortal heroes like Hercules and Achilles were bribed with the prospect of Pandora's jar; were told that they could set Elpis free if they felt like giving up everything.

The documentary was pretty depressing. And I usually liked documentaries. So when it was over, I flipped off the channel and decided to watch the news.

The _news_. Like I needed more depressing.

I flipped on to the news. It was 9:02. There was a news story on, and the anchor lady was making a huge fuss about something that happened "mere minutes ago." She kept saying things like "witnesses keep claiming that he deserved it" and kept calling some random guy a "local hero" and that she hoped "the poor girlfriend" realized what she had. I just wanted her to get on with the story. I had no idea what she was talking about. Or, at least, I didn't at first.

"Our local hero of the night," the newscaster said, causing me to sit up on the couch in anticipation, "goes by the name Percy Jackson."

I froze. What?

"Around 8:30 earlier tonight, many residents of the city were dining at a local bar and grill titled '_Rusty's Depot._' Jackson had entered and sat down at the bar. No one paid him any mind, until another young male joined him. They began to have a conversation. As luck would have it, a local policeman was on-shift tonight at his part time job, which just happens to be a bartender at Rusty's."

"Percy, what did you do?" I whispered as I fell to the ground, my eyes glued to the screen.

"The policeman heard everything, and so did security cameras in the building," the anchor continued.

No. No, no, no. This couldn't be happening. Please, tell me Percy didn't go there with-

"Luke Castellan is the name of the other male. As rumor has it, Castellan had been _abusing _his girlfriend of about a year, who coincidentally is Jackson's 'best friend.' Jackson cleverly worked his way into Castellan's head with his misleading questions, and eventually got him to admit to his crimes."

The anchor paused like she was hearing something. She put her hand up to her ear, where I knew a small headphone was hiding.

"Hold on," she said. "This just in..."

No. No suspense. Percy, what did you _say_!?

"It seems we've gotten a hold of the video from the security cameras..."

I inched closer to the TV screen. This was ridiculous.

"For those of you interested, and I know I am, here's the clip."

The scene shifted to a grainy image of a dark restaurant. It was just light enough to see the faces and bodies of multiple people sitting at and around the bar. I recognized the two off to the left. My boyfriend and my best friend, Luke and Percy. Awesome.

"_I don't know, we just spend time together,_" Luke was saying. "_I'd say once a day. Why?_"

"_I'm sure that puts a bruise on her social life,_" Percy replied, and though the audio was terrible, you could still tell he came off calm and smooth. I would have laughed at the cleverness of his wording had it not been about me.

"_What's that supposed to mean?_" Luke asked slowly..

"_What?_" Percy responded. "_I was just pointing out that she probably wants to spend some time with Thalia, or something._"

"_Nice try, Jackson. What are you up to?_"

"_I mean, doesn't it feel like you're _abusing_ the fact that she wants to spend time with you?_"

"_And you put it like that because...?_"

I spaced out and stared at the screen, though I wasn't hearing anything. Percy had a way with words. But this was all wrong. I didn't want this. I especially didn't want this on the news.

I snapped out of my inattentiveness when there was a sudden movement on the screen that caught my eye. I gasped. Luke had thrown a punch at Percy. But he'd caught Luke's hand.

"_Why so angry all of a sudden, Luke?_" you could hear Percy say. "_Did I say something?_"

"_You act like you know something,_" Luke said. Another punch. Percy caught that one too.

"_I _do_ know something,_" Percy hissed, bending Luke's arms back into a really painful-looking position. "_I know you've been abusing my best friend._"

"_You've got no proof,_" Luke snapped. People in the restaurant started to look over at the two.

"_Not yet,_" Percy replied coldly "_But I will._"

"_Ha!_" Luke scoffed, ripping his hands from Percy's grasp. "_Have fun finding the nonexistent proof that Annabeth's easy to hit!_"

The clip abruptly shut off. The scene went back to the anchor-woman who was staring, shocked, at what must have been the screen she'd been watching the video on. She saw the video had stopped and looked at the camera, shaking her hair out and trying to act nonchalant. The camera whirled around and a policeman came onto the screen.

"This week's episode has been permanently discontinued," he said sarcastically. "Tune in next week." The cameraman followed the policeman as he trekked over to a computer and clicked a few buttons and tapped a few keys on the keyboard. A tech producer rushed over to the policeman.

"Hey, you can't delete that file!" he was screaming. "That's rightfully-"

"Stolen," the police officer interrupted. "We did not authorize the viewing of this clip. So no, it's not rightfully yours."

"But if you-"

"_Carl!_" you heard the newscaster hiss. The camera zoomed back around to the anchor, who was smiling nervously.

"Sorry about that, folks," she said, clearing her throat. "It's a hectic night here at the studio."

They'd shown my name. No one would've known if they hadn't shown that stupid video clip. Now anyone who was watching the news knew about the pathetic little Annabeth girl who'd been abused by her boyfriend. How embarrassing for poor Annabeth.

The anchor-woman whispered to someone who was off-screen, then smiled back at the camera.

"We've got statistics on the girlfriend," she said. "Annabeth Chase, age 19. Here's a photo."

Oh, great. They've got statistics on poor Annabeth Chase, the little girl who'd been abused by her boyfriend. I could just cry.

A picture popped up on the screen, next to my name, age, school, and occupation. The picture was recent, one taken from Thalia's restaurant security cameras, which had really high resolution. I had no idea how they got it or even knew it was me. It was from a month or so ago, when Percy had taken me to see Thalia, who I had no idea was managing a business. Thalia and I were releasing each other from a hug, and Thalia's back was to the camera, which meant you could see my expression (happy), hair color (blonde as ever) and outfit (my pajama pants and pink and white t-shirt) perfectly. I scrambled closer to the TV and pressed the pause button. The screen froze on my bio. I stared at it for what seemed like hours.

I would've stared at it all night too, had it not been for Percy trying to stealthily unlock and open his front door to no avail.

* * *

!!!!! ONE MORE CHAPTER!!!

Wow, these just keep getting cheesier and cheesier. I know nothing about realism, huh?

Like it? Mind telling me if you do?


	11. She does stupid things when she's angry

**I'd like to give an extremely special thanks to all who've reviewed:** Eclipse of Athena, Demi-God daughter of the sea, Thalia Castellan, percabeth-fan-4-ever, pichucherrimteam, leprechaunsarekronos'sservants, PERCABETHGIRL-12, Maurauder, FantasyFan86, filmyfurry, Stolen Silent Stars, Mrs. Jordan Youngblood Powers, Seaweedbrain249, xXBadLuckDuckXx, dancechick307, NCISissnazzy, xXH3ARTXx, Parthenonlover2757, bombplaya3, September Sorrows, maxride45, Fanfiction Fanatiction, athenashadow, Percysbro, Silentsole, Tidustide, SeaKing1342, Il0veH0ckey, Adonai63, PJOnHP, ..21, everyoneisMISunderstood, The Evil Hershey Panda, 11Kayla11, THA musIc GuY, Spunkalovely (ILOVEYOU MEGARA!), ThaliaGrace04, LabyrinthOfDarkness, anonymousbooklover, crazybookworm95, Lisbry, Saf222, Colorful Catastrophe (Thank you times 3, puffin 0997!), Tatiana Lopes, wisegirlindisguise, Sargent fuzzy bear, AchilliesOfGreece, sonofthegods, MiHeadIsFullOfKelp, Wolf Vamp, Mr Rememberall, lms15, Minesweeper62, LabyrinthOfDarkness, and alidei

**And to the anonymous reviewers: **Nikki J, puffin0997, Hali, future mrs taylor d. lautner, peaceluvllamas, peacemaker1898, luke, Syd, Massie, PERcabeth21, vê, and Athena'sFaveGrl, A Fan, Ihateluke, Chloe/Annabeth, NoyP, fdsg (I really like this one :D), Megan, annabeth chase, SmoothieBlender, Percabeth, THILIA FAN, volleyballgirl08, crazy4books, percabethluvr, and demigod of the sea.

To **demigod of the sea**: I'm saving that for the sequel :)

[press ctrl + f and type in your username to see if you're there, which you probably are. sorry if you reviewed and you're not up there. please let me know.]

AND NOW:

**The Last Chapter.**

(BADUM-PSH) Per-cy!! Oh, Perrrcy!

* * *

People do stupid things when they're angry. For instance, when I decided to have a 'conversation' with the sadistic pig who'd been abusing my best friend. I did something stupid and approached him without a plan. The good news? I got my ass saved by an undercover cop: what are the odds? The bad news? There was aftermath.

I bounded up the stairs to my apartment. Everything was dark, which was weird. There was normally life in the apartments. I guess everyone was out.

Sure, everyone was out at the same exact time. Alright.

People do stupid things when they're angry. I got to my door and paused. If Annabeth was asleep, I didn't want to wake her up. So I slowly pulled the keys out of my pocket and inserted them into the lock. The door clicked open.

That's where everything went to Hades.

Instead of being dark and empty, my living room was lit up with TV light and Annabeth sat inches from the screen. She had had her eyes glued to it, I could tell, but she'd snapped her head to look at me when I'd opened the door. Her eyes were wild with bluish light, and her hair was a mess, sticking up everywhere. It took her a few minutes to comprehend who I was. Then she glared at me. I swallowed.

"Hey, Wise Girl," I said nervously, surprised by my friend's death look. "What're you glaring at me for?"

Annabeth reached over and pressed the play button on the TV. I walked closer and stood behind her as she looked up from her spot on the carpet at the screen. I looked at the show she was watching and froze.

It was a profile for a young girl, age 19. She went to school at Marymount Manhattan and worked part-time as a barista at a little café. She had blonde hair and gray eyes, and her name was Annabeth Chase. There was even a picture. I was in the picture. Thalia was in the picture.

Why the hell was there a picture and profile of Annabeth on my television screen?

The profile disappeared. A news jingle was playing softly in the background as a woman appeared on-screen. Annabeth watched me as I watched the evening news.

"Castellan, after being convicted, was apprehend by an additional police officer, and taken to a local station for questioning. Our inside source says Jackson was allowed to remove himself from the situation. That's all for our top story so far. Stay tuned."

The news jingle played and the logo appeared on screen. Annabeth paused it again and looked up at me.

"What have you done?" she asked, sounding angry, but also calm.

I stared blankly down at her, my mouth hanging open.

"T...They put it on the news?" I asked after a while. "It's that important?"

"Apparently," Annabeth replied coldly, her face expressionless. If she was upset, she wasn't showing it. But I could hear it in her tone. She was angry. People do stupid things when they're angry.

"Why would they do that?"

Annabeth sighed, finally moving as she ran a hand through her blonde curls. She blinked a few times and looked at me.

"I don't know why, Percy. But the point is, they did."

"Does it really matter?"

The second I said it, Annabeth glared at me and I realized it was a stupid question.

"Of course it matters, Percy!" Annabeth snapped. "I'll be the poor little Annabeth girl who got hurt! Everyone will know about Luke!"

"You've never cared about appearances before," I pointed out. She froze.

"You didn't care what anyone thought," I continued. "Before Luke, you didn't give a shit if someone didn't like you. If they said anything, you'd just beat them up. You were always like that. It really hurt to see you change. You were a different person the whole time, ever since Luke started abusing you-"

"Please don't call it that."

"What would you like me to call it then, Annabeth!?" I barked. "Not talking about the problem isn't going to make it go away! It happened, whether you like it or not!"

No. I was letting my anger get the best of me. No, no, no. When did I start yelling?

Annabeth's nostrils flared and she narrowed her eyes up at me.

"Well, I'm _sorry_ if I'd like to avoid the subject about how you're right!" She yelled. I knew how hard it was for her to admit I was right. "I don't really feel like discussing how I turned into a softie who lets anyone beat on her just because she thought she was in love!"

"Love!"

"So are you happy, Percy?" Annabeth shouted, ignoring me as her eyes flashed dangerously. "You're right! Luke abused me! Did you need to hear it from me, too? Was humiliating him not enough for you? Did you have to come back for me?!"

"Annabeth, I-" I began, staring bewilderedly down at her. I wanted her to stop yelling. I never meant for this to turn into a fight. But Annabeth had other plans.

"I didn't see it until it was too late!" She snapped. "By the time I'd realized I was in over my head, well... I was in over my head! I couldn't get out. He's a lot more oppressive towards me than he is to you, Percy!"

"Annabeth, stop!" I shouted, even though I didn't want to raise my voice. But my friend wasn't going to be stopped any time soon. Unless someone took drastic measures.

I guess that someone was me, huh?

"But it doesn't matter anymore, does it!?" Annabeth leaned forward, putting weight on her hands on the carpet and glaring daggers up at me as she raised her voice and continued her rant. "Because he's going to go to JAIL! _Jail_, Percy!? Really? He didn't... I can't believe it's got to be that intense!"

I dropped to my knees and looked Annabeth in the eye. People do stupid things when they're angry, and she was still screaming at me. I desperately wanted her to stop.

"He'll probably never be able to get a job now! Ever!"

I cupped Annabeth's angry face in my hands. Anything to get her to shut up. I hated it when we fought, and I knew she did too.

She really got in my face then. "I didn't want it to end like this!" she shouted, nose to nose with me. "I could have moved, or done something- but you had to go on and ruin it with no plan what-so-ever! Percy, that's just so typical of you, completely not caring about-"

In one swift motion, before she could protest, I pressed my lips to hers. For a moment, nothing happened. Then she relaxed and leaned into me, lifting her hand to run her fingers through my hair. The moment was sweet and short-lived and it was quiet in my apartment. When I pulled away, a siren was wailing in the distance. I was out of breath and wouldn't break eye contact with Annabeth. She stared at me with wide eyes. I took a shaky breath. Something warm was dripping down my face. It felt like blood. Wait, my eyes were bleeding? I ignored the strange feeling.

"You can be happy now," I promised. "Please stop worrying about that creep. He's getting what he deserved. Don't you get how he hurt you?"

"Percy..." Annabeth had tears on the corners of her eyes. "I get it. Are you... crying?"

I shook my head. "No, of course not. Why would I be-"

Annabeth reached out and touched my face. When she brought her fingers up to my eyes, they were glistening with water.

_That's impossible_, my brain protested. _You haven't cried since you were in grade school._

"Well what do you know," I whispered, taking hold of Annabeth's wrist and staring at her fingers. I looked up into her storm-cloud gray eyes that were wide with concern. I smiled. "I guess I am."

Annabeth laughed as a few tears spilled from her eyes. She wiped them away with her free hand and locked eyes with me.

My heart skipped a beat. I touched her face and traced her jaw line.

"Are we gonna be okay?" she murmured. I nodded.

"Yeah, Wise Girl, I think we will be."

Annabeth rolled her eyes and smiled. "Alright, Seaweed Brain," she said. I caught her eye and she caught her breath. She leaned closer to me.

"I'll take your word for it," she breathed before kissing me again, her hands making their way to my hair. I wrapped my arm around her waist and pulled her closer. She smiled as we kissed. The carpet was uncomfortable, but it was worth it to have my best friend sitting next to me and making me feel like I'd made her happy.

Like I said, people do stupid things when they're angry. But sometimes, the stupid things aren't too bad.

Sometimes, you fight with someone who's been hurt and you try to make them happy.

Sometimes, you find out your best friend is a good kisser, even though you already kind of knew that.

Sometimes things work out. And maybe Annabeth and I really _would_ be okay.

Just maybe.

* * *

THERE IT IS. **Ba-boom.** Last chapter.

Uggh, guys. I hate it. Did it suck as bad as I thought it did? Too short? Too OOC? Hmm... maybe an epilogue is in order? Oh, I don't know. I'll figure it out :]

So, did you like it? Mind telling me if you did?

P.S.  
Happy late Valentines day :D Yay for coming home late and happy on date nights! :]


	12. Epilogue: Life goes on

**I'd like to give an extremely special thanks to all who reviewed this story:** Eclipse of Athena, Demi-God daughter of the sea, Thalia Castellan, percabeth-fan-4-ever, pichucherrimteam, leprechaunsarekronos'sservants, PERCABETHGIRL-12, Maurauder, FantasyFan86, filmyfurry, Stolen Silent Stars, Mrs. Jordan Youngblood Powers, Seaweedbrain249, xXBadLuckDuckXx, dancechick307, NCISissnazzy, xXH3ARTXx, Parthenonlover2757, bombplaya3, September Sorrows, maxride45, Fanfiction Fanatiction, athenashadow, Percysbro, Silentsole, Tidustide, SeaKing1342, Il0veH0ckey, Adonai63, PJOnHP, ..21, everyoneisMISunderstood, The Evil Hershey Panda, 11Kayla11, THA musIc GuY, Spunkalovely (ILOVEYOU MEGARA!), ThaliaGrace04, LabyrinthOfDarkness, anonymousbooklover, crazybookworm95, Lisbry, Saf222, Colorful Catastrophe (Thank you times 3, puffin 0997!), Tatiana Lopes, wisegirlindisguise, Sargent fuzzy bear, AchilliesOfGreece, sonofthegods, MiHeadIsFullOfKelp, Wolf Vamp, Mr Rememberall, lms15, Minesweeper62, LabyrinthOfDarkness, alidei, .I Talk-2-Evil Little Pixies., MuSiCxcDj, SteelerFanForever13, twilighttangleheart, Karate Chic, PERCABETHGIRL-12, love is killing me, the son of percy and annabeth, danid96, and Lizziekaerocks77.

**And to the anonymous reviewers: **Nikki J, puffin0997, Hali, future mrs taylor d. lautner, peaceluvllamas, peacemaker1898, luke, Syd, Massie, PERcabeth21, vê, and Athena'sFaveGrl, A Fan, Ihateluke, Chloe/Annabeth, NoyP, fdsg (I really like this one :D), Megan, annabeth chase, SmoothieBlender, Percabeth, THILIA FAN, volleyballgirl08, crazy4books, percabethluvr, demigod of the sea, Kii, and kamal.

**And to all who favorited or added this to their story alerts: **You know who you are :]

EPILOGUE!

A few people wanted this. A few didn't. It's not essential to the plot, but it's fun :D

Read on if you'd like, but you so **don't** have to.

Oh, hey, by the way: It's not in Annabeth's or Percy's POV. :P Have fun!

* * *

A couple entered and talked to the hostess, who showed them to a table. The girl had blonde, curly hair and piercing gray eyes. The boy had black hair and suntanned skin. The girl grinned and waved at me as she sat down. I smiled and waved back, then turned around to the table I was arranging.

So much had changed in two months. I never thought I would see Annabeth again until Percy showed up one day with my old best friend. I smiled to myself. They were in their pajamas that day, and they looked like a couple. A couple who had fun and didn't care what people thought of them.

Then Annabeth started spending less time with Percy, and more time with Luke. I would never admit this to Percy, but I noticed the shift in Annabeth's priorities. I don't think I saw her for two weeks.

And when I did finally see her again, it was a picture. On the news. Telling me something that I didn't want to hear: that Percy was right, and Luke _had _been abusing Annabeth. I'd denied it for the longest time. I didn't want Luke, _my _Luke, to be that kind of monster. But I didn't have a say in it. One little fling at a summer camp 6 years ago was all I got. I hadn't seen Luke since our last day of camp, and he'd started dating Annabeth.

I finished setting up the table and stood up, admiring my work. I heard a laugh from behind me and turned around to see the boy and girl who'd just entered. Annabeth was laughing at something Percy was saying, but Percy obviously wasn't trying to be funny. Annabeth apologized and tried to stop laughing, but she couldn't. Percy smiled.

"Hey, you two," I said as I approached their table.

"Thalia!" Percy said, exasperated. "Thank the gods you're here."

I smiled at my friend's habit of using Greek mythology terms. I'd gotten him started with that.

"Why are we thanking the gods again?" I asked, looking at Annabeth, who'd covered her laughing mouth with her hands.

"You can get her to shut up!" Percy replied, also looking at our blonde friend.

"I'm sorry, Seaweed Brain!" Annabeth said, removing her hands from her mouth. "But it was just the way you said that!"

"Said what?" I asked.

"Oh, he just completely tripped over his words," Annabeth replied, shrugging. Percy smiled.

"Just forget it," he said.

I said goodbye to my friends and started to walk into the kitchen. I stopped and looked over my shoulder. Percy and Annabeth had started having an intense conversation.

I thought about the news story on Annabeth, Percy, and Luke. It had aired a week and a half ago. From what I could see, it wasn't affecting Annabeth at all. But I knew better. She was my best friend. I knew that when she wasn't in public, she let the news story get to her. I felt bad, but Annabeth was strong and would get over it.

Because she had Percy.

I turned all the way around and leaned on a post to watch my friends. They were both laughing now, and Percy's cell phone rang. He fished it out of his pocket and answered it. After a few seconds, his eyes widened and he smiled. Annabeth raised an eyebrow and he mouthed the word 'Grover.' Annabeth's mouth dropped open. Percy noticed me looking at them and waved me over.

I got to their table right as Percy was handing Annabeth the phone.

"Grover?" she said into it. "How've you been!?"

They talked for a few minutes before Annabeth handed the phone to me. I caught up with Grover then gave Percy's phone back to him. Grover and Percy talked for at least another twenty minutes. Annabeth and Percy's appetizer came, and I sat down and started up a conversation with Annabeth. We kept that going until a girl, age 19 or 20, walked up to our table. She stood quietly until someone noticed her. Annabeth and I stopped talking. Percy looked up.

Percy told Grover to hang on and covered the receiver with his hand.

"Um, yes?" he said to the girl. She had dark-brown-almost-black hair and brown eyes.

"Sorry to interrupt," she said sweetly, "But are you Percy and Annabeth from that news show?"

I saw Annabeth roll her eyes and look away. Percy pursed his lips.

"Yeah, that's us," he said impatiently.

The girl smiled. "I'm Silena. I've lived here in New York my whole life, and I never would've imagined that I would see that story on the news."

"No offense, Silena," Annabeth began. "But why are you telling us this?"

"I was wondering if, by chance, you two lived here when you were 15?" Silena asked.

"I was," Percy replied. "But Annabeth lived in San Francisco."

Silena smiled wider. "I knew I was right," she said to herself.

"Excuse me?" Annabeth said, suspicious.

"I don't think you remember me," Silena replied. "But we all went to the same summer camp."

Percy's eyes widened. Annabeth's suspicious look melted away and she smiled.

"Wow," I said. "I think she's right."

"Small world, huh?" Percy said. We all agreed.

So we spent the next half hour catching up with Grover and Silena.

And life went on.

--------

Told you it wasn't necessary to the plot. :D But I realized I'd forgotten to even mention Grover from Percy's POV, and I felt he needed some love. As did Thalia. And Silena was just an afterthought.

Like it? Mind telling me if you did?


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